It's Tonks
by Darci the Thespian
Summary: Tonks's life from her first day at Hogwarts to her death. It does contain spoilers for the 4th, 5th, 6th, and 7th books. The characters and the events are from J.K. Rowling, I do not own any of this.
1. Welcome to Hogwarts

**A/N: Tonks is 11 in this chapter and it's her first trip to Hogwarts**

Tonks's POV

I move my heavy trunk to a compartment. I was annoyed at my mother. She had yelled at me for wanting to be myself and have pink hair. She said that I should go natural. So, my hair was an annoying shoulder length mousy brown. I got into an empty compartment and put my trunk away. I have a tawny owl I named Squeak. I stretched out in the seats, wanting all this room for myself when the door opened. I glanced up and saw a red haired and freckled boy.

"Who are you?"

"Charlie Weasley."

"Cool, I'm Tonks."

"First year too?"

"Yeah." I said nodding, happy to find another first year. Charlie and I talked for a bit about our families. He told me about his one older brother, 4 younger brothers, and his newborn baby sister. I told him about my mum and dad. We were in the middle of talking about Quidditch, when a guy interrupted us. He looked exactly like Charlie, except his hair was chin length, and he was older. I would have bet 10 galleons that he was related to Charlie.

"Hey Charlie, everything all right?"

"Yes Bill. Oh, Bill is my older brother, Tonks. He's 13 and a Gryffindor."

"Yes, and I'll leave now. Just checking to make sure you're alright." Bill left.

"So, plan on being a Gryffindor?" I asked Charlie. Charlie shrugged.

"Like all of my family is, so yeah, I guess. What about you?"

"I don't know. My mother was a Slytherin and my father was a Hufflepuff."

"You also may be a Gryffindor." Charlie pointed out over their snacks that they got. I just shrugged.

Soon, the train started to slow down, and we arrived at Hogwarts. I was really excited! I glanced at my reflection and grinned at my pink hair. I turned to look at Charlie, who looks dumbfounded. "Your hair . . ."

"I'm a metamorphmagus." I explained quickly.

"Oh what's that? Some sort of creature?"Charlie asked, seriously.

"No." I said sharply. Thankfully, Charlie dropped the subject. We both got in a boat, following a rather large man named Rubeus Hagrid. As we made our way across the lake, we got our first view of Hogwarts. It was amazing and beautiful and breathtaking and wonderful. We entered the huge castle and met another staff member, Professor McGonagall. Charlie told me she's head of Gryffindor house. Finally, we are going to get sorted.

Standing up there was embarrassing, since everyone was watching you. The crowd of first years kept getting smaller and smaller. Finally, "Tonks, Nymphadora!" was called. I flinched at the name and heard some snorts around me. I put on a determined face and went over to the stool. The hat covered my eyes and most of my hair. A voice started to speak. _Ah, what do I see here . . . much bravery . . . a keen mind . . .very loyal . . . and a certain dark side . . . difficult . . .what should we do about you? You do not seem to want to be bad . . . you're mind still needs to grow some more . . . still, you have a lot of bravery . . . and will do anything for a friend . . . I've decided . . . "HUFFLEPUFF!"_

I slowly made my way to the Hufflepuff table, kind of mad at the sorting hat. Excuse me; my mind was plenty big enough! And I was brave! I didn't care though about getting in Hufflepuff, I mean my dad was in it. But, I won't be with my first friend here. After all, Charlie was a Weasley. "Weasley, Charles!" I patiently wait for only a little bit before "GRYFFINDOR!" came out of the sorting hat's 'mouth.' I smile sadly, but I'm still happy for him. Over at the Gryffindor table, I see Bill pat Charlie on the back. I turned back to my table, and saw it was filled with food. Grinning, I stuffed myself.


	2. Stories

**A/N: Set in Halloween of Tonks's first year**

Tonks's POV

I yawned and checked my watch. It was really late, but Charlie and I had made plans to hang out after the feast. My hair was orange and black for Halloween, which earned many looks throughout the day. Not that I cared. I finally see the redheaded Weasley make his way over to me. "Took you long enough. Eat too much?" I joked. Charlie snorted and sat down next to me. We had another little feast as we swapped stories.

"I don't have any stories."

"Come on Charlie! You've been at Hogwarts for two months! I have one."

"Okay, Tonks, you go."

"Um, how about the time I got detention from Professor Sprout?"

"Wow, I have to hear this."

"Oh shut up. So, it was like the first week of school. My lovely hair was canary yellow, to match my robes."

"What does this have to do with your story?"

"I'm getting there, patience! So, I was on my way to Herbology, walking down with you. I enter the greenhouse, and within the first five minutes, shatter a row of plants."

"Nice."

"Shut up. So, Professor Sprout tells me to clean up the plants after the lesson."

"Oh yeah, I remember that. I went ahead because you said not to wait for you. Now that I'm hearing this story, I'm not sure that was a good idea."

"So, people start filling in for the next lesson as I'm cleaning plant goo off the floor. And a bunch of 5th year Slytherins walk over to me. First, they insult my house. Next, they insult my hair. Finally, they say my first name."

Charlie started laughing. He knew firsthand what happened when you called me Nymphadora. He had said the once and ended up having a black eye.

"Anyway, Professor Sprout yells at me for cursing them, and making boils appear on them. She was already ticked because of the plants, and then, I was the first person to be put in detention from Professor Sprout."

When Charlie finished laughing, he cleared his throat. "Let me tell you a story of my two troublesome twin brothers, Fred and George."

I grinned. Charlie's told me lots about those two.

"So, Fred and George were 2 at this time. Mum was baking, and they decided it would be funny to test the food to see if it was okay. Now, George lured her away, and Fred got down to business. When Mum came back, she freaked. The kitchen was a complete mess, and Fred and George were nowhere to be found. Not only did they cover their newborn baby brother, Ron, in peanut butter, but they managed to cover every inch of the ceiling in mayonnaise. Dad managed to track them down by their smell, and found them in the broom storage shack. He took them, washed them, and locked them in their room. Now, Ron was being washed up too. Mum had just started cleaning the ceiling when you heard this thump from their room. Running upstairs, they had made noises to alert our parents so that they could escape when the door was open. Let's just say dinner was postponed that night. Percy would yell at them. Very bossy for a 6 year old. Me, well I was not the best at controlling my magic, so it was a little haywire. Bill was at Hogwarts when this happened. Which was last year."

I laughed so hard. I took a small break for air, and then laughed some more. "Wow, just wow." Charlie grinned. We finished the food and then went off to our separate common rooms. I was still laughing as I went to sleep that night.


	3. End of a great year

**A/N: Set in Christmas of Tonks's first year, also please review!**

Tonks's POV

Usually, Christmas is filled with cheesy decorations. At my house it is, not at Hogwarts. Hogwarts is filled with real decorations, and not cheap, plastic ones that you buy in a muggle shop. Hogwarts makes you feel like it is Christmas. And with it, comes the excitement that'll never go away. Never.

Anyway, besides that, Hogwarts has been amazing! I have a best friend, Charlie Weasley, duh, a boyfriend, this random Hufflepuff boy who asked me out, and I'm at the best place ever! Until Christmas, when my mum is making me return to the house. Luckily, Charlie is returning to his place too, so I don't feel too bad. On the train, we chat.

"I can't believe you have a boyfriend," he says at once.

"Why? Jealous," I said, even though that was totally not the case.

He snorted. "Look at you! How did _you_ get a boyfriend? How much did you have to pay him?"

"He asked me. And I'm going to dump him after Christmas."

"Tonks the Heartbreaker."

"Shut up. And I'm not dumping him on Christmas."

"Anyway, you are too young to have a boyfriend."

"Which is why you and I aren't telling any parents."

"I don't know . . . "

"I'll give you five galleons."

"Deal."

Sure enough, I had to pay him. Lousy kid. Christmas was fun. I got some extra supplies (yay, who doesn't want parchment and ink for Christmas!) and also a magazine with neat hairdos. I would mimic them, and see which one I like best. I went for a blue spiky mohawk, but my mom yelled at me.

About a month after Christmas I dumped the random Hufflepuff boy who had asked me out. He seemed really sad, so I told him that this other girl really liked him, which she did. She nearly hexed me when we started going out.

Leaving Hogwarts after my first year was hard. I really liked it, and I didn't want to spend all summer doing chores at home. But, the sooner the summer passed, the sooner I'll be home.


	4. Career choice

**A/N: Set in Tonks's fifth year**

Tonks's POV

Well, Career Day is upon us at Hogwarts. Charlie's little brother, Percy, started this year. He seems too eager, but weren't we all like that? Charlie is also a prefect, something I discovered the very first day.

So, we were walking and talking, when he called me Nymphadora. I yelled at him that I'll jinx him if he kept saying that name. Then he told me he could take off points because he was a prefect. I was in a bad mood afterwards. Such a bad mood that I asked Professor Sprout why I didn't become a prefect. Apparently I lacked the ability to behave properly.

Now I find myself in Professor Sprout's office. "So, Nymphadora, what would you like you do?"

That's a hard question. I hadn't thought about what I wanted to do. Well, I was a rebel. And I liked adventure. I could figure things out quickly, not as quickly as a Ravenclaw, though. Suddenly, the perfect career choice popped up in my mind. "I want to be an Auror."

Professor Sprout frowned. "Are you sure Tonks?" She doesn't trust me, especially around fragile possessions. It's not my fault, I'm clumsy.

"Positive," I said, smiling. An Auror! I was going to be an Auror!

I met up with Charlie later. "So, Career choice?" I asked him.

"Working with dragons in Romania." said Charlie proudly.

"What?! You do realize that you're like the best Quidditch player ever!" I said incredulously.

"So?" asked Charlie.

I wondered if all boys were this stupid. "So it makes sense for you to be a professional Quidditch player."

"But I like dragons."

"I'm not complaining! But your team is going to."

"Who cares?!"

"That's the Charlie Weasley I know." I said fondly.

"Enough about me, what are you going to be?"

"An Auror," I said proudly.

Charlie laughed. "I can see it now, Tonks the Auror. Responsible for catching millions of death eaters. You lure them in with your looks and then you capture them!"

I laughed. "Good thing I'm a metamorphmagus." I didn't want to mention that my relatives were death eaters. Responsible for doing awful things. Maybe, being an Auror would balance that out. I sighed and thought some more about being an Auror. The more I thought about it, the more I liked that idea.


	5. Apparating

**A/N: Set in Tonks's sixth year**

Tonks's POV

"I'm so excited!" I said to my best friend, Charlie Weasley. "Finally we can learn how to Apparate!" He grinned and nodded. Learning it was hard, but fun. It took Charlie awhile to get the hang of it. I thought I was doing well, until I splinched myself. One moment I was whole, the next I was in the circle minus one arm. We were just learning until we could take our tests in March. Well, Charlie could. I had to wait. Charlie was also 17 already.

I had to take my test later than most people, since my birthday was a bit later. After the first test, I could see the 6th years were either really happy or really upset. "How did you do?" I asked Charlie.

"Failed." He said miserably.

"Aw what happened?" I said sympathetically. I could see how Charlie failed, he was huge, even bigger than some of the 7th years.

"I Apparated on top of a lady doing her shopping which was about 5 miles south of where I was supposed to go." Charlie said glumly.

I suppressed a laugh thinking of how it must be like to the lady, shopping, and then BAM! A huge guy is on top of her.

"What happened to the lady?" I asked curiously

"Ministry officials went to clear her memory." Charlie said.

"Ah, that's good." I said positively, trying to cheer Charlie up.

The next date for the Apparition test was after my birthday, so I was able to take it. "Isn't this exciting?!" I said. Charlie was determined to past. And he did. I did too, on my first try as I reminded Charlie.

"Now we can Apparate! That's going to be so helpful when I'm an Auror." I told Charlie as we walked down to the Quidditch field. Since Charlie was the caption and seeker, he had practice a lot.

"You're the captain! You can change the practices!" I told Charlie once, but he just sighed and explained that the Gryffindor team needed to be in shape.

After Charlie left I went upstairs to the common room. I got comfy chair, and decided to take a nap. I was eager to Apparate again.


	6. Auror Training

**A/N: Set right after Tonks's 7****th**** year, starting with her very last day at Hogwarts**

Tonks's POV

I entered the Great Hall for my very last breakfast here at Hogwarts. I looked around and thought about how much I'll miss this. Breakfast was amazing as usual. After that, it was time to board the train. The train ride sped by too quickly. Then, we were at Kings Cross I hugged Charlie goodbye. "Maybe we'll meet again," I said, getting a little emotional.

"Yeah, maybe." said Charlie, giving me a half smile. He went over to his mother, followed by his three younger brothers. I went to find my parents.

They were standing there, smiling. I hugged them. "I graduated!" I said happily. My dad laughed. As we were driving, I noticed that we weren't going home. I mentioned this to them, but they said nothing. They just smiled. A little creeped out, I fed some owl treats to Squeak. We stopped at a flat. The pieces clicked together.

"Is this . . .?"

"Your very own flat, Dora." said my father. I explored the flat. It was so cool. "The fireplace is connected to the floo network." said my mother. I set Squeak down. There was a living room on the left and a kitchen on the right. Farther down was a bedroom with a bathroom, and a laundry room. I thanked my mother and father and they left. I unpacked and then left the flat.

Nervously, I waited in the Head of Aurors office. I shifted my position, and studied my shoes. The door opened and I looked up. Rufus Scrimgeour sat down on the other side of the desk.

"So, you would like to be an Auror, Miss Tonks." He said sweetly, as if I was a little girl.

I returned the smile. "Yes, I would."

Scrimgeour looked through my papers. "Well, you certainly have the grades . . ." I smiled proudly. "What House were you in?" He asked, looking up at me.

A little taken back at the question, I frowned. "Hufflepuff, why?" I could see disappointment in his eyes and I really wanted to jinx him, but I didn't do anything.

He sighed. "All right, well you should report here tomorrow to get your trainer. Good luck," he said as he stood up. "You may go now."

I nodded and left the office. "Coming back?" a guy asked.

I nodded. "Yeah, I begin training tomorrow."

"Nice, I'm Proudfout, by the way." He held out his hand and I shook it.

"I'm Tonks." I said.

Tomorrow morning, I was back at the Auror headquarters. Scrimgeour introduced me to my trainer. "Tonks, meet Moody."

"Nice to meet you," I said in a small voice. Moody was very scary, especially his one eye that can see 360 degrees.

"I'm going to be working with you for 3 years. If you succeed in all of the courses, you'll be an Auror." Moody said gruffly.

I nodded, wondering what's going to happen in the next 3 years.


	7. Stealth and Tracking

**A/N: During Tonks's training to become an Auror**

Tonks's POV

I reported for training. "Alright, what course are we doing now?" I asked Moody. I was comfortable around him because he wasn't really scary to me. Besides, we're on the same side.

"Stealth and Tracking," he said. I tried not to appear discouraged. I was rather clumsy.

Half the time I went anywhere for the course, I knocked something over or ran into someone. Moody was getting really impatient with me. I was getting nervous, after all I was so close to becoming an Auror.

The end of the courses, there is a written exam and a practical exam. You can't fail either, or you're out. The written exam went well. It's hard to concentrate with Moody's magical eye staring at you 24/7.

I went to get ready for the practical exam. I was trailing this random stranger. I had to trail him for 12 hours, and he mustn't know he was being followed. I nodded and got ready.

The morning bit was hard. I was really tired and hungry. I kept getting distracted by restaurants. I was a complete fool for not bringing food or water.

The man entered a shop, and so did I. He began walking quickly to the door. I tried to follow, but managed to knock down two rows of merchandise, and also knocking into about ten people. Everyone stopped to help the people and the products. I couldn't see him, but I knew that any normal muggle would stay and watch the commotion, unless . . .

. . . he wasn't a muggle, and he knew he was being followed. I cursed. Of course Moody would pick someone, probably an Auror, for me to follow. I ran out the out the other entrance, and onto the street. I kept walking, looking for anyone that seemed familiar. I finally saw the guy. He got held up by some annoying pedestrians trying to sell him stuff. I kept an eye on him as I petted a dog (the dog was really cute). I followed him, and managed to not lose him again.

At the end of my test, he was waiting in a small gazebo with Moody. "Hey." I said cheerily, walking over to them. Moody glared at me. "Tonks, meet Dawlish, another Auror." I nodded and shook his hand. He seemed impressed that I had figured out he was an Auror. "We're going to discuss your tracking skills. You can go home." I nodded and left. First though, I stopped to grab something to eat.

The next day, I met with Moody to see my tests results. "Well?" I asked.

"You passed the written exam and nearly failed the practical test." He said. I sighed. "But, you did manage to find him again and even though you're clumsy, you don't let that slow you down." Moody continues. I grinned. I had passed!

He frowned and leaned closer. "I would suggest some practice on Stealth and Training." I nodded. I did need some practice.


	8. Concealment and Disguise

**A/N: During Tonks's training to become an Auror**

Tonks's POV

I yawned. "What are we doing now?" I asked Moody. I didn't get a lot of sleep due to noisy neighbors.

"Concealment and Disguise." He said. I smiled. Finally, something I was good at! The overall training was good. Being a metamorphmagus meant that I don't have to study.

This was one of the more relaxing courses. Moody would keep nagging me about studying, but I already was an expert at this.

The written exam was so easy, I finished it quickly. Moody suspected I cheated, although that's impossible with all the anti-cheating spells he put around me.

The practical exam was going to be fun. First he introduced me to Shacklebolt, Savage, and Williamson. These three really advanced Aurors would try to spot me in a crowd. If they each spot me, I failed the exam. This practical exam would go on for 5 hours.

We entered a playground. There were many moms here and little kids. I would stick out, especially with my pink hair. That was why when they let me go; I changed straight away to long, blonde, curly hair and blue eyes. I also changed my face into the shape of a small circle. I walked around a little for the first hour.

The second hour, I changed into messy brown hair that was hastily pulled up in a ponytail, and light brown eyes. My face was round, and had a big nose. I pretended to be an anxious mom. So far, they haven't spotted me. I would sneak a glance around, and find them searching the crowd. A particularly tense moment was when I locked eye contact with Savage. But he just smiled and turned back to the playground.

The third hour I frizzy red hair, freckles, and green eyes. I also made myself look younger. I was getting bored, so I decided to take a chance. I was walking when I bumped into Williamson.

"Oh sorry," I said.

"It's alright, miss. My fault." He stepped back to let me continue walking. I was impressed. My metamorphmagus skills must be getting better.

The fourth hour I turned my hair jet black and had dark eyes. I was sullen and silent, watching carefully. I noticed that the Aurors were beginning to get annoyed. They kept frowning.

The fifth hour I was an elderly woman with grey hair. It was fun, because people are so nice to elderly ladies. I chatted with this lady for 30 minutes about my nonexistent grandchildren.

End of the fifth hour, and they were all chatting together. I changed back into my bubble gum pink hair and walked over to them. "Hey guys, how did I do?"

Moddy glared at me. "You left."

"No I didn't." I said. "I'll prove it."

One by one, I changed into my five different appearances. When I was done, they looked a little astounded. "Didn't anyone tell you I was a metamorphmagus?" I asked innocently.

Savage frowned and shook his head. "We thought you died your hair." I snorted. Why would I dye my hair?

"Well, you got top marks, Nymphadora." Moody said. That took me by surprise. No one called my Nymphadora, I thought I had made that clear. Perhaps because I had morphed a lot today, my hair instantly went fiery red. "Don't call me Nymphadora." I growled, which made everyone take a step back.

I smiled and went home, satisfied that I'll make a good Auror.

After all my training and courses, I met with Scrimgeour again. He said that he was happy to report that I passed three years of excellent training, and that I was an Auror.


	9. YouKnowWho's back

**A/N: Set right after Harry says Voldemort is back in the Goblet of Fire and everyone thinks he's making it up. Also, please please please please please please please please please please review.**

Tonks's POV

I walked into my office and set my cloak down. I was exhausted and tired. I had spent the entire night making sure Moody was alright. He was like an uncle to me; we were really close (like family). Apparently, he had been locked in a trunk for 9 months as a death eater impersonated him. So many weird things happened this year, I have a headache just thinking about it.

I closed my eyes as another headache came on. I opened them up and turned around to find Dawlish standing there. He was frowning. "So, Tonks, ready to get this year behind us?"

"Yeah, especially with . . . Moody being held hostage and the madness of Barty Crouch." I said, not wanting to say what I was about to say.

Dawlish frowned. "Yes, well we've straightned it all out."

"You caught You-Know-Who?" I asked as a joke. I meant it as a joke, but Dawlish's eyes flashed. "You-Know-Who died 14 years ago, Tonks. Surely a sensible Auror like you would realize that."

His comment was a shade too sincere, and it rubbed me the wrong way. "Yeah, I'm also sensible to piece the pieces together and come up with the logical conclusion that He's back."

"And what are the pieces?" He asked coolly.

My hair was a fiery red that matched my temper. Out of the corner of my eye I saw that everyone was watching us. "Well, let me think," I said sarcastically, "First, Moody was kidnapped by a DEATH EATER. Second, death eaters were trying to hurt the all important Boy Who Lived. Third, Mr. Crouch was SUPPOSIDELY mad, yet it was his son that was a death eater so he knew stuff. Fourth, the BOY WHO LIVED told us He was back. Fifth, it's kind of impossible for someone to suddenly become mad in a couple hours like Dumbledore. Unless something dramatic happened, this is not the case. So, tell me why He's NOT back."

There was silence. "I hope you sort out your priorities soon, Nymphadora," Dawlish said, as he left. It sounded more like a threat that a suggestion. I sat back down on my seat and started at my little cubicle in which my desk was. I covered it was a poster of the Weird Sisters, a photo of me and my family, another photo of me and Charlie right before a Quidditch match between Gryffindor and Hufflepuff. There was also a very large mirror, so that I could see if my appearance was alright. Right now, I had bags under my eyes, a scowl on my face, and messy hair that was fading to an unpleasant pinkish red color. I could see Shacklebolt coming over here from the reflection in the mirror.

"Here, Tonks," he said as he dropped a huge pile of papers on my desk. Looks like I'll be staying late tonight. "Gee thanks Shacklebolt." I said as I got to work.

I was the last Auror to leave thanks to Shacklebolt. As I was walking home out on a muggle street he came up to me. A little creeped out, he asked if I would like some dinner, since I had to stay late. Not wanting to yell at another colleague, I followed him into a muggle diner. I was a little surprised as he brought me to a table with Moody, Dumbledore, and a red headed man that looked familiar. He sat down and looked at the menu. Dumbfounded, I sat down between Moody and Shacklebolt.

We ordered some drinks, the conversation on work. I found out that the red headed man is Arthur Weasley. His office, the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts, was on the same floor as the Auror headquarters. He probably had to go through it every day to get to his office. Plus, he was Charlie's dad.

It was all normal until Dumbledore said, "So, Nymphadora, Kingsley told me what happened at work today."

I winced. "Yeah, and don't call me Nymphadora, please." I said, trying to be respectful. Dumbledore didn't look like he was crazy; on the contrary, he was very sane. "Dawlish was just being annoying."

Shacklebolt frowned and leaned forward. "So, did you believe the things you said?"

I was taken aback at that question. I opened my mouth, and then closed it to think. Did I truly believe that He was back? "Yeah, I mean even if He's not back it's better to be safe than sorry."

Moody nodded. "So, how would you like to-" "So He's back? Definitely?" I said, not caring that I interrupted Moody.

Arthur nodded gravely. "Definitely." I really hoped my fear didn't show on my face. I picked up my glass and realized I was meeting with Dumbledore, the greatest wizard ever, looking like I fell down a hill. I quickly changed my appearance. I didn't want to attract attention, so I didn't change my hair (which was really faded) but I did make myself look like I had a couple of good night sleeps.

Moody gave me a warning glare to not interrupt him this time, and continued. "So, how would you like to fight him?" It seemed like a weird and obvious question. And a very important one.

"Of course." I said confidently. Dumbledore smiled, as if he knew that I was a little apprehensive of going into what looked like another war.

"The Ministry is being blind. They are not realizing it, and when they do, it'll be too late. So, I have reformed the Order of the Phoenix. This order will fight Voldemort and his Death Eaters." Dumbledore said.

I was in shock. The first word that came out of my mouth was "Reformed?" Moody gave a snort of laughter. "The Order fought in the first war. It's a very secret society. Emphasis on _secret_. No one can know about this. Especially not the Ministry."

"I can tell my parents, right?" I asked Dumbledore. "They have to know that He's back, they'll be in danger if they don't." Dumbledore nodded. "I understand. You may tell them anything you want to. Make sure they know it's a secret." I smiled in relief.

"To avoid people being suspicious, you cannot freely talk to Arthur and me," said Kingsley, "Nor can you show that we're both working together for the Order. I'm your superior and you shall treat me as such." "You can just ignore me," said Arthur helpfully.

"Also, you have to talk to Dawlish about how you were wrong," said Kingsley firmly. I raised my eyebrows. "So he's not suspicious anymore." He explained.

When dinner was over, we all got up to depart. "The first meeting is in one week," said Dumbledore. "Arthur will escort you. Make sure to stay late and then meet him in the muggle world."

"Don't worry, Kingsley will give me a stack of papers so I will stay late," I said grumpily, which made them all laugh.

I got to my flat super super late. I fell straight asleep. The meeting next week just won't come fast enough.


	10. First meeting

**A/N: Set a week after the last chapter**

Tonks's POV

Last week passed so slowly. Dawlish was watching me closely for a couple of days, but then stopped. My bad mood was catching. Let's just say patience isn't my strongest point.

Finally, the day came. Kingsley dropped off a load of work for me to do. When I groaned he scolded me. He's either a really good actor or he really doesn't like me. After getting all the work done I glanced in the mirror. Bubble gum pink hair and light blue eyes. I grinned at myself and got all my stuff together. I walked on the muggle streets for a couple of blocks until I saw Arthur. Since I didn't know where we go going, he used Side-along apparition.

We came to a really old house. He went and opened a door that wasn't there a second before. I entered it and opened my mouth to ask where we were when he shushed me. I nodded and tried to walk quietly. Unfortunately, there was a troll leg umbrella stand lying on the floor and I tripped over it. Suddenly, curtains on a wall opened and a portrait of a woman started screeching. A couple of people ran out and tugged the curtain shut.

"Oops," I said weakly as I was herded into the meeting room. They all introduced me, but only a couple stood out. Molly, Arthur's wife, who had bright red hair, Remus Lupin, a nice guy who's like a gentleman, and a guy with black hair named Sirius Black.

"Black?" I asked, curiously. Everyone in the room tensed.

"Yes, why?" he asked cautiously.

"Oh, my mom's maiden name was Black." The room stayed tense.

"And what was her name?" Sirius asked sitting back in his chair.

"Andromeda," I said, sitting down.

Sirius laughed. "Andromeda, huh? She was my favorite cousin." The tension in the room evaporated.

"Yeah," I said, "you were here favorite cousin too."

"Well, since both of us were good eggs in a rotten family, the competition wasn't too hard," Sirius joked. I laughed and then the meeting continued.

The meeting was alright, if a bit boring. I was getting up when Molly invited me to stay for dinner.

"Tonks, dear, aren't you hungry?" she asked.

"Uh, yeah a bit." I admitted as my stomach growled.

"Why don't you stay?" asked Molly as she cleaned up.

"Sure," I said brightly, leaving the meeting room.

Dinner was amazing. I met the Weasley's four youngest children and their friend. Fred and George were clearly troublemakers and I made a mental note to keep an eye on them. Ron was okay, he really didn't want to talk. Hermione was a nice young lady who was very smart. I made another mental note to try to make her laugh. Ginny was the youngest Weasley and only girl. She reminded me of me. At dinner, I sat in between Remus and Ginny. Hermione was sitting across from me next to Ron. They totally liked each other, I could tell.

I was eating quietly until Sirius asked me what I would do when I got tired of the color pink. "I would just change it," I said nonchalantly.

"You must get tired of changing your hair. It seems a lot of work," said Molly. I frowned. I had totally forgot that no one knew I was a metamorphmagus.

"Not really," I said politely as my hair changed to brown, and it became very bushy. I kept eating as everyone stared.

"Well, it's nice to have a metamorphmagus on our side," said a voice quietly to my right. I turned to look at Remus and smiled. "Yep!" I said and turned back to my dinner.

"Wow! You're a metamorphmagus? No way!" said Hermione. I grinned and nodded. Ron asked what that was and Hermione explained it to him.

"Can you look like me?" asked Ginny. I nodded and made my hair fiery red with brown eyes and freckles. "How about a pig?" I laughed and made my hair round and pink, my face round, dark eyes, and a pig snout for a nose. Sirius let out a bark-like laugh. I changed back to my normal appearance. "It's cool that you can have any hair in the world and you chose bubble gum pink," said Ginny. "Thanks," I said, smiling.

After dinner, the children went up to bed. Sirius, Lupin, and I were talking in the sitting room as Molly and Arthur cleaned up.

"What's one thing we all have in common?" Sirius asked.

I rolled my eyes. "We're all in the Order of the Phoenix?"

"We are all wizards/witches?" suggested Lupin.

"No and no, we all can change ourselves into something else," said Sirius proudly. Lupin glared at Sirius, which was weird.

"So, what can the grand Sirius change into?" I asked dramamtically.

"A dog, I'm an Animagus." said Sirius proudly.

"You chose a dog as your animal? Not something unique, like a phoenix or peacock?" I asked, surprised. Sirius rolled his eyes. "Yes, I change into a dog."

"That explains your bark-like laugh," I muttered, before turning to Lupin. "So, are you a metamorphmagus or an Animagus?"

"Neither," he said quietly. Now, a smart person wouldn't push it, they would just let it go. But I wasn't very smart then.

"So, what are you then?" I asked like an idiot.

"A werewolf," he said. "And I understand if you don't want to talk to me after tonight."

"Why?" I asked. "You seem nice. Far nicer than other people I've met. Besides, you're friends with my cousin, so you're friends with me."

Remus smiled in thanks. I changed the subject by asking how they met. So, I was bombarded with tales from 7 years at Hogwarts.

Later that night, I said goodnight to them and headed back to my flat.

Being new and all, I really wasn't given an important job. Which was nice since I was clumsy and busy. Yet, when volunteers were taken to go retrieve Harry Potter, I signed up at once.


	11. The Advanced Guard: Part 1

**A/N: Set in the Order of the Phoenix**

Tonks's POV

I frowned as they discussed means of getting Harry's aunt and uncle out of the house. After getting all the information, I had sat back and thought. Remus raised his eyes, asking me what I was thinking. I shrugged. Really, the people were over-thinking it. I was becoming quite comfortable with being in the order, and was addressing more people by their first names, in a casual way. Everyone seemed to like me here, except Snape.

"How about," I said, cutting across Mad-Eye's plan which involved polyjuice potion, a foul smelling sock, and an invisibility cloak, "we just send them a letter that they've been shortlisted for the All-England Best-Kept Suburban Lawn Competition?" I said. Everyone looked at me in amazement. I tried not to laugh at their dumbfounded expressions. "Well, from what I've heard about them it seems likely. Besides, they won't take Harry with them, and they'll leave for enough time for use to go in and get Harry out of there." Remus smiled, impressed. For some reason, that made me blush.

"And that is why you're an Auror," said Mad-Eye as he sat back. I smiled proudly. Kingsley gave me a nod. Soon, the letter was sent and the meeting was dismissed. As I was walking out, I caught a flash of something flesh-colored flying upwards. Grinning, I took a detour to where the children where.

"Nice try, but the door's been Imperturbable." I said to a guilty looking Ginny. "An easy way to check is to throw stuff at it. If they soar away, then it's been Imperturbabled. See you later; we're going to rescue Harry."

Ginny smiled and it occurred to me that I shouldn't have told her that. I just shook off that thought and headed back downstairs to a waiting Remus. He smiled and escorted me to the door.

Later, we all met up again. It was me, Remus, Kingsley, Mad-Eye, Elphia Doge, Dedalus Diggle, Emmeline Vance, Sturgis Podmore, and Hestia Jones. We all gathered around and waited until the clear signal was given.

The house was very clean. Too clean. I opened cabinets, and inspected a fine piece of a china plate, when I heard someone move beside me. Trying to make space, I jumped, slid, and the plate fell and crashed, making a rather loud sound. Everyone froze, glaring at me.

"It wasn't my fault," I said, after I had found my voice. Mad-Eye glared at me and turned away. Remus, however, was smiling. "Don't worry, besides it'll let Harry know we're here."

I nodded, as other people started talking, since there was no need to keep their voices down anymore. We moved to the hallway, right below the stairs. For some odd reason, it was completely dark and no one was doing anything about it.

Then, Harry came out to the top of the steps, wand raised. He looked scared, from what I could tell in the dark.

"Lower your wand, boy, before you take someone's eye out," growled Mad-Eye.

"Professor Moody?" Harry asked uncertainly. I remembered that he was in Hogwarts with Mad-Eye's imposter.

"I don't know so much about 'Professor.' Never got round to much teaching, did I? Get down here, we want to see you properly," said Mad-Eye. I remembered the news telling us about what had happened last year. I shuddered, but it had gone unnoticed.

Since Remus is smart, he realized that Harry needed to hear someone he could completely trust. "It's all right, Harry. We've come to take you away."

"P-professor Lupin? Is that you?" Harry asked disbelieving. Now, I was realizing that it must have been creepy for Harry to face a bunch of older wizards and witches in the dark.

"Why are we all standing in the dark?" I asked, a little bit annoyed. "Lumos." Light flooded into the hallway and stairs. Everyone studied Harry, who studied everyone back. "Oooh, he looks just like I thought he would," I said excitedly. "Wotcher, Harry!"

"Yeah, I see what you mean, Remus. He looks exactly like James." said Kingsley. Remus had told us all about Harry beforehand.

"Except the eyes, Lily's eyes." said Elphias.

Then Mad-Eye, being paranoid, checked that Harry was Harry. "Are you quite sure it's him, Lupin? It'd be a nice lookout if we bring back some Death Eater impersonating him. We ought to ask him something only the real Potter would know."

Remus spoke up, "Harry, what form does your Patronus take?"

"A stag," Harry answered nervously. It must be a weird experience for him.

"That's him, Mad-Eye," said Remus.

Harry walked downstairs and set his wand in his back pocket, which made Mad-Eye mad.

"Don't put your wand there, boy! What if it ignited? Better wizards than you have lost buttocks, you know!" Mad-Eye roared at the boy.

I was interested to hear this story of great wizards who had lost buttocks. "Who d' you know who's lost a buttock?" I asked.

"Never you mind, you just keep your wand out of your back pocket! Elementary wand safety, nobody bothers about it anymore . . ."

I rolled my eyes. It would have taken Mad-Eye one second to tell me the story. Besides, it wasn't like he had lost a buttock.

"And I saw that," he yelled from the kitchen. I suppressed a grin. Mad-Eye was so strict and paranoid and professional.

Remus was chatting with Harry.

"How are you?" Remus asked, a little bit worried.

"F-fine. I'm—you're really lucky the Dursleys are out . . ." Harry was saying.

"Lucky, ha! It was me that lured them out of the way. Sent a letter by Muffle post telling them they'd been short-listed for the All-England Best-Kept Suburban Lawn Competition. They're heading off to the prize-giving right now . . . Or they think they are." I said confidently. I was trying not to show how relieved I was that my plan actually worked. I walked into the kitchen. Remus and Harry were still talking, but I was talking to Hestia. Finally, those two came into the kitchen.

Remus started introducing everyone to Harry. "This is Alastor Moody, Harry,"

"Yeah, I know," Harry said in a small voice.

"And this is Nymphadora—"

"_Don't_ call me Nymphadora, Remus," I said, shuddering. "It's Tonks."

"—Nymphadora Tonks, who prefers to be known by her surname only," finished Remus smoothly.

"So would you if your fool of a mother had called you 'Nymphadora,'" I muttered.

Remus smiled and continued introducing people. "Emmeline Vance, Sturgis Podmore, and Hestia Jones. A surprising number of people volunteered to come and greet you." Surprising? He was the Boy-Who-Lived, after all.

"Yeah, well, the more the better. We're your guard, Potter." said Mad-Eye in his usual tone of low and suspicious.

"We're just waiting for the signal to tell us it's safe to set off. We've got about 15 minutes." said Remus.

Meanwhile, I was looking are the kitchen, amazed. "Very clean, aren't they, these Muggles? My dad's Muggle-born and he's a right old slop. I suppose it varies, just like with wizards?"

"Er-yeah. Look what's going on, I haven't heard anything from anyone what's Vol—" begun Harry.

I flinched at the name, and a couple of other people reacted too.

"What?" asked Harry.

"We're not discussing anything here, it's too risky," said Mad-Eye. "_Damn it_, it keeps sticking—ever since that scum wore it—"

Mad-Eye popped out his eye.

"Mad-Eye, you do know that's disgusting, don't you?" I asked casually.

Mad-Eye ignored my remark. "Get me a glass of water, would you, Harry?"

After Harry got it to him, Mad-Eye nodded. "Cheers. I wand 360 degrees visibility on the return journey." Of course Mad-Eye wanted to be able to see everything everywhere. I'm just fine with whatever degrees visibility I have.

"How're we getting—wherever we're going?" asked Harry.

"Brooms. Only way. You're too young to Apparate, they'll be watching the Floo Network, and it's more then our life's work to set up an unauthorized Portkey." said Remus.

"Remus says you're a good flier," Kingsley said, approvingly.

Remus checked his watch. "He's excellent, Anyway, you'd better go and get packed, Harry, we want to be ready to go when the signal comes."

"I'll come and help you," I said brightly.

I followed Harry to his room. "Funny place, it's a bit too clean, d'you know what I mean? Bit unnatural." We entered his room. "Oh, this is better." I went over to the mirror. "You know, I don't think purple's really my color. D'you think it makes me look a bit peaky?" Seriously, why I had chosen purple, I don't know.

"Er—"

"Yeah, it does." I changed my hair to bubble-gum pink.

"How did you do that?"

"I'm a Metamorphmagus," I said, making sure my hair was good. I could tell that Harry didn't understand what that was. "It means I can change my appearance at will. I was born one. I got top marks in Concealment and Disguise during Auror training without any study at all, it was great."

"You're an Auror?"

I was happy to hear that Harry sounded impressed rather than shocked. "Yeah," I said proudly. "Kingsley is as well; he's a bit higher up than I am, though. I only qualified a year ago. Nearly failed on Stealth and Tracking, I'm dead clumsy, did you hear me break that plate when we arrived downstairs?"

"Can you learn how to be a Metamorphmagus?"

I chuckled. "Bet you wouldn't mind hiding that scar sometimes, eh?"

"No, I wouldn't mind."

"Well, you'll have to learn the hard way, I'm afraid. Metamorphmagi are really rare, they're born, not made. Most wizards need to use a wand or potions to change their appearance . . . But we've got to get going, Harry, we're supposed to be packing." I added guiltily.

"Oh—yeah." Harry said, collecting books.

"Don't be stupid; it'll be much quicker If I—_pack_!" I cried, waving my wand so everything went in the trunk. "It's not very neat. My mum's got this knack of getting stuff to fit itself neatly—she even gets the socks to fold themselves—but I've never mastered how she does it—it's a kind of a flick—" I flicked my wand, but nothing really happened. "Aw, well, at least it's all in." I saw a filthy bird cage. "That could do with a bit of cleaning too—scourgify—well, that's a bit better—I've never quite got the hang of these sort of householdy spells. Right—got everything? Cauldron? Broom? Wow! A _Firebolt_?" I looked at the impressive broom. "And I'm still riding a Comet Two Sixty. Ah well . . . wand still in your jeans? Both buttocks still on? Okay, let's go. Locomotor Trunk."

We walked back down to the kitchen. Remus looked up. "Excellent. We've got about a minute, I think. We should probably get out into the garden so we're ready. Harry, I've left a letter telling you aunt and uncle not to worry –"

"They won't," Harry said.

"That you're safe—"

"That'll just depress them."

"—and you'll see them next summer."

"Do I have to?"

Mad-Eye waved Harry over to him. "Come here, boy. I need to Disillusion you."

"You need to what?" asked Harry.

"Disillusionment Charm. Lupin says you've got an Invisibility Cloak, but it won't stay on while we're flying; this'll disguise you better. Here you go—"

I looked as Harry became a human chameleon. "Nice one, Mad-Eye."

"Come on," said Mad-Eye, walking outside. "Clear night. Could've done with a bit more cloud cover. Right, you," he told Harry, "we're going to be flying in close formation. Tonks'll be right in front of you, keep close to her tail. Lupin'll be covering you from below. I'm going to be behind you. The rest'll be circling us. We don't break ranks for anything, got me? If one of us is killed—"

"Is that likely?" asked Harry nervously.

"—the others keep flying, don't stop, don't break ranks. If they take out all of us and you survive, Harry, the rear guard are standing by to take over; keep flying east and they'll join you."

"Stop being so cheerful, Mad-Eye, he'll think we're not taking this seriously," I said, strapping Harry's owl cage and trunk to my broom.

Mad-Eye growled at me. "I'm just telling the boy the plan. Our job's to deliver him safely to headquarters and if we die in the attempt—"

"No one's going to die." said Kingsley.

"Mount your broom, that's the first signal!" commented Remus, rather sharply. "Second signal, let's go!" We all kicked off and sped into the night sky.


	12. The Advanced Guard: Part 2

**A/N: Thanks to Rachel for my first review!**

Tonks's POV

The flying was wonderful, if a little chilly. I smiled and felt great for the first time in a while. "Hard left, hard left, there's a Muggle looking up!" Mad-Eye shouted. I swerved as Mad-Eye said, "We need more height . . . Give it another quarter of a mile." I nodded, following Mad-Eye's instructions.

The more we flew, the colder it got. "Bear south! Town ahead!" Mad-Eye said and I went right. "Bear southeast and keep climbing, there's some low cloud ahead we can lose ourselves in!" yelled Mad-Eye, which was completely unreasonable.

"We're not going through clouds! We'll get soaked, Mad-Eye!" I yelled, since no one else would stand up to him and tell him that we want to arrive alive, not frozen dead. Luckily, Mad-Eye seemed to agree with me. We altered the flight here and there. It was actually really peaceful. The cold stopped me from daydreaming though.

"Turn southwest! We want to avoid the motorway!" Mad-Eye said. "We ought to double back for a bit, just to make sure we're not being followed."

I'm ashamed to say that I pretty much lost it. "ARE YOU MAD, MAD-EYE? We're all frozen to our brooms! If we keep going off course we're not going to get there until next week! We're nearly there now!"

"Time to start the decent! Follow Tonks, Harry!" came Remus's voice. I smiled involuntarily as he said Tonks, not Nymphadora. As I dived down to the ground, I felt proud that Remus had stopped calling my Nymphadora. "Here we go!" I called out as I landed. I unbuckled Harry's trunk and owl cage.

"Where are we?" Harry asked Lupin.

"In a minute," Lupin quietly said.

"Got it," Mad-Eye said as he pulled out Dumbledore's Put-Outer, "Borrowed it from Dumbledore. That'll take care of any Muggles looking out of the window, see? Now, come on, quick."

Remus helped me carry the trunk. He's such a gentleman! So sweet . . . now I let myself daydream as Moody gave Harry the piece of paper.

"Here, read quickly and memorize," said Mad-Eye.

"What's the Order of the –?" began Harry.

"Not here, boy! Wait till we're inside!" snapped Mad-Eye

"But where's—?" asked Harry.

"Think about what you've just memorized," Remus said, helpfully.

The place appeared. I remember when I had first seen that. I was amazed.

"Come on, hurry," said Mad-Eye.

Remus opened the door. "Get in quick, Harry. But don't go too far inside and don't touch anything." We all walked in after Harry. Moody went to lift the Disillusionment Charm. "Here—. Now stay still, everyone, while I give us a bit of light in here."

Molly quickly walked over to us. "Oh, Harry, it's lovely to see you! You're looking peaky; you need feeding up too, but you'll have to wait a bit for dinner, I'm afraid . . ." Molly turned to us. "He's just arrived, the meeting's started . . ." I followed everyone to the meeting.

"This house still gives me the creeps," I said to no one in particular. Kingsley nodded and Remus said, "I know." I sat down next to Remus, where I usually sit, and concentrated on the meeting. Except, it was so nice in here, and I was exhausted, plus I'd completed my mission. So, I zoned in and out at times as they discussed the prophecy and the Department of Mysteries. Finally, the meeting was over, and it was time for dinner.


	13. The Advanced Guard: Part 3

Tonks's POV

Since most of the people weren't staying for dinner, they left. After they left, Remus, Molly, and I resealed the many locks and bolts on the door. I liked staying for dinner here, the food was really good and there were plenty of people to talk to. When we were done, we turned around to see the children going down the stairs. Molly went over to them. Remus and I followed Molly when I tripped over the umbrella stand again.

"_Tonks!" _Molly said exasperatedly.

"I'm sorry!" I said, trying to get off the floor. "It's that stupid umbrella stand, that's the second time I've tripped over –" Then Mrs. Black's portrait opened and started screeching.

"_Filth! Scum! By-products of dirt and vileness! Half-breeds, mutants, freaks, begone from this place! How dare you befoul the house of my fathers –" _I kept apologizing over the ruckus as I put the umbrella stand back. Remus and Molly tried to force the curtains close. Molly gave up and Sirius ran out to help. "Shut up, you horrible hag, shut UP!" which angered Mrs. Black even more,_ "Yoooou! Blood traitor, abomination, shame of my flesh!" _"I said—shut—UP!" yelled Sirius as he and Remus finally closed the curtain. I slipped inside the kitchen.

Mr. Weasley and Bill were cleaning some plans up. "Harry!" cried Mr. Weasley, walking over to him. "Good to see you!"

"Journey all right, Harry?" asked Bill, who was having difficulty cleaning up. "Mad-Eye didn't make you come via Greenland, then?"

"He tried," I said, going over to help Bill. Of course I managed to knock over a candle onto the parchment. "Oh no—_sorry_—"

"Here, dear," said Molly tiredly, cleaning up my mess. She saw Harry looking at the plans. "This sort of thing ought to be cleared away promptly at the end of the meetings."

"_Evanesco_," said Bill. I talked with Bill as Sirius introduced Harry to Mundungus, and Molly yelled at Mundungus.

"And if you wand dinner before midnight I'll need a hand. No, you can stay where you are, Harry dear, you've had a long journey—" began Molly.

"What can I do, Molly?" I asked excitedly, walking forward.

"Er—no, it's all right, Tonks, you have a rest too, you've done enough today—" said Molly nervously.

"No, no, I want to help!" I said, going over to help Ginny while knocking over a chair. I really needed to stop being so clumsy. Ginny and I collected cutlery and set the table.

Dinner was good. I sat in between Ginny and Hermione and across from Harry. I decided to change my nose tonight, so I was multitasking with morphing and eating. My nose was beaklike like Severus's, then a small button mushroom, then with hairy nostrils. Ginny and Hermione started requesting their favorite noses. "Do the one like a pig snout, Tonks . . ." I did, and I grinned at Harry as he glanced up. As dinner came to a close, Ginny went over to play with Crookshanks and my nose went back to normal. I let out a big yawn and felt like turning in for the night.

"Nearly time for bed, I think," said Molly.

"Not just yet, Molly." said Sirius, looking at Harry. "You know, I'm surprised at you. I thought the first thing you'd do when you got here would be to start asking questions about Voldemort." I winced and was suddenly alert, listening carefully.

"I did!" Harry said. "I ask Ron and Hermione but they said we're not allowed in the Order, so—"

"And they're quite right. You're too young," said Molly.

"Since when did someone have to be in the Order of the Phoenix to ask questions?" Sirius asked. "Harry's been trapped in that Muggle house for a month. He's got the right to know what's been happen—"

"Hang on!" said George.

"How come Harry gets his questions answered?" asked Fred.

"_We've _been trying to get stuff out of you for a month and you haven't told us a single stinking thing!" George said.

"_You're too young, you're not in the Order_." Fred said, mimicking Molly. "Harry's not even of age!"

"It's not my fault you haven't been told what the Order's doing," Sirius said, "That's your parents' decision. Harry, on the other hand—"

"It's not down to you to decide what's good for Harry!" Molly said, dangerously. "You haven't forgotten what Dumbledore said, I suppose?"

"Which bit?" asked Sirius.

"The bit about not telling Harry more than he _needs to know_." said Molly.

"I don't intent to tell him more than he needs to know, Molly," Sirius said, "But as he was the one who saw Voldemort come back? He has more right than most to—"

"He's not a member of the Order of the Phoenix!" cut in Molly. "He's only fifteen and—"

"—and he's dealt with as much as most in the Order," interrupted Sirius, "and more than some—"

"No one's denying what he's done!" Molly said, nearly shouting. "But he's still—"

"He's not a child!" said Sirius sharply.

"He's not an adult either! He's not_ James_, Sirius!" Molly said.

"I'm perfectly clear who he is, thanks, Molly," Sirius said coldly.

"I'm not sure you are! Sometimes, they way you talk about him, it's as though you think you've got your best friend back!" said Molly.

"What's wrong with that?" Harry asked.

"What's wrong, Harry, is that you are not your father, however much you might look like him." Molly said. "You are still at school and adults responsible for you should not forget it."

"Meaning I'm an irresponsible godfather?" asked Sirius, hotly.

"Meaning you've been known to act rashly, Sirius, which is why Dumbledore keeps reminding you to stay at home and—" started Molly.

"We'll leave my instructions from Dumbledore out of this, if you please!" Sirius shouted.

"Arthur!" Molly said, turning to him. "Arthur, back me up!"

Arthur took time to form an answer. "Dumbledore knows the position has changed, Molly. He accepts that Harry will have to be filled in to a certain extent know that he is staying at headquarters—"

"Yes, but there's a difference between that and inviting him to ask whatever he likes!" said Molly.

"Personally," Remus said softly, "I think it better that Harry gets the facts—not all the facts, Molly, but the general picture—from us, rather than a garbled version from . . . others."

Molly took that hard. "Well, well . . . I can see I'm going to be overruled. I'll just say this: Dumbledore must have had his reasons for not wanting Harry to know too much, and speaking as someone who has got Harry's best interests at heart—"

"He's not your son," Sirius said.

"He's as good as. Who else has he got?" asked Molly.

"He's got me!" Sirius said fiercely.

"Yes. The thing is, it's been rather difficult for you to look after him while you've been locked up in Azkaban, hasn't it?" Molly said slyly.

Sirius stood up.

"Molly, you're not the only person at this table who cares about Harry. Sirius, sit _down_." Remus said. "I think Harry ought to be allowed a say in this. He's old enough to decide for himself."

Harry's answer was immediate. "I want to know what's been going on."

"Very well," Molly said, "Ginny—Ron—Hermione—Fred—George—I want you out of this kitchen, now."

Everyone started shouting at once.

"We're of age!" shouted Fred and George.

"If Harry's allowed, why can't I?" yelled Ron.

"Mum, I want to!" cried Ginny.

"NO!" Molly bellowed, standing up. "I absolutely forbid—"

"Molly, you can't stop Fred and George," Arthur said weakly. "They_ are_ of age—"

"They're still at school—" started Molly.

"But they're legally adults now." Arthur responded.

"I—oh, all right then, Fred and George can stay, but Ron—" Molly said.

"Harry'll tell me and Hermione everything you say anyway! Won't—won't you?" Ron said. I thought it was weird that he seemed so uncertain. They must have had a row.

However, they were obviously still good friends as Harry said, "Course I will."

"Fine! Fine! Ginny—BED!" ordered Molly. Ginny was upset, and her tantrum made Mrs. Black started screaming. Remus ran to shut Mrs. Black up.

After Remus had sat back down, Sirius spoke. "Okay, Harry . . . what do you want to know?"

Harry waited a moment before answering. "Where's Voldemort? What's he doing? I've been trying to watch the Muggle news, and there hasn't been anything that looks like him yet, no funny deaths or anything—"

"That's because there haven't been any suspicious deaths yet." Sirius said, "Not as far as we know, anyway . . . And we know quite a lot."

"More than he thinks we do anyway," Remus said.

"How come he's stopped killing people?" asked Harry.

"Because he doesn't want to draw attention to himself at the moment. It would be dangerous for him. His comeback didn't come off quite the way he wanted it to, you see. He messed it up," explained Sirius.

Remus smiled. "Or rather, you messed it up for him."

"How?" asked Harry, confused.

"You weren't supposed to survive! Nobody apart from his Death Eaters was supposed to know he'd come back. But you survived to bear witness." Sirius said.

Remus continued. "And the very last person he wanted alerted to his return the moment he got back was Dumbledore. And you made sure Dumbledore knew at once."

Harry still didn't understand this. "How as that helped?"

"Are you kidding? Dumbledore was the only one You-Know-Who was ever scared of!" Bill exclaimed.

"Thanks to you, Dumbledore was able to recall the Order of the Phoenix about an hour after Voldemort returned," Sirius said.

"How d'you know what his plans are?" asked Harry.

"Dumbeldore's got a shrewd idea, and Dumbeldore's shrewd ideas normally turn out to be accurate." Remus said.

"So what does Dumbledore reckon he's planning?" Harry asked.

"Well, firstly, he wants to build up his army again. In the old days he had huge numbers at his command; witches and wizards he'd bullied or bewitched into following him, his faithful Death Eaters, a great variety of Dark creatures. You heard him planning to recruit the giants; well, they'll be just one group he's after. He's certainly not going to try and take on the Ministry of Magic with only a dozen Death Eaters." Sirius said.

The kids looked a little apprehensive. Harry spoke up, "So you're trying to stop him from getting more followers?"

Remus nodded. "We're doing our best."

"How?" asked Harry.

Bill answered this time. "Well, the main thing is to try and convince as many people as possible that You-Know-Who really has returned, to put them on their guard. It's proving tricky, though."

"Why?" Harry asked.

"Because of the Ministry's attitude," I said. "You saw Cornelius Fudge after You-Know-Who came back, Harry. Well, he hasn't shifted his position at all. He's absolutely refusing to believe it's happening."

"But why?" Harry exclaimed. "Why's he being so stupid? If Dumbledore—"

"Ah, well, you've put your finger on the problem. _Dumbeldore_." Arthur said wryly.

"Fudge is frightened of him, you see." I said sadly.

"Frightened of Dumbledore?" Harry said, disbelieving.

"Frightened of what he's up to. You see, Fudge thinks Dumbledore wants to be Minister of Magic." Arthur said.

"But Dumbledore doesn't want—" started Harry.

"Of course he doesn't." Arthur responded. "He's never wanted the Minister's job, even though a lot of people wanted him to take it when Millicent Bagnold retired. Fudge came to power instead, but he's never quite forgotten how much popular support Dumbledore had, even though Dumbledore never applied for the job."

Remus continued on with explaining about Dumbledore and Fudge. "Deep down, Fudge knows Dumbledore's much cleverer than he is, a much more powerful wizard, and in the early days of his Ministry he was forever asking Dumbledore for help and advice. But it seems that he's become fond of power now, and much more confident. He loves being Minister of Magic, and he's managed to convince himself that he's the clever one and Dumbledore's simply stirring up trouble for the sake of it."

Harry was understandably angry. "How can he think that? How can he think Dumbledore would just make it all up—that_ I'd_ make it all up?"

Sirius's reply was bitter. "Because accepting that Voldemort's back would mean trouble like the Ministry hasn't had to cope with for nearly fourteen years. Fudge just can't bring himself to face it. It's so much more comfortable to convince himself Dumbledore's lying to destabilize him."

"You see the problem," Remus said, "While the Ministry insists there is nothing to fear from Voldemort, it's hard to convince people he's back, especially as they really don't want to believe it in the first place. What's more, the Ministry's leaning heavily on the _Daily Prophet_ not to report any of what they're calling Dumbledore's rumormongering, so most of the Wizarding community are completely unaware anything's happened, and that makes them easy targets for the Death Eaters if they're using the Imperius Curse."

"But you're telling people, aren't you?" asked Harry, looking at each one of us in the eyes. "You're letting people know he's back."

We all smiled grimly. "Well, as everyone thinks I'm a mad mass murderer and the Ministry's put a ten-thousand-Galleon price on my head, I can hardly stroll up the street and start handing out leaflets, can I?" Sirius said agitatedly.

"And I'm not a very popular dinner guest with most of the community. It's an occupational hazard of being a werewolf," said Remus, which made me sad. Really, it wasn't his fault he was a werewolf!

"Tonks and Arthur would look their jobs at the Ministry if they started shooting their mouths off. And it's very important for us to have spies inside the Ministry, because you can bet Voldemort will have them too." Sirius said.

"We've managed to convince a couple of people, though. Tonks here, for one—she's too young to have been in the Order of the Phoenix last time, and having Aurors on our side is a huge advantage—" Arthur said, which filled me with pride. "Kingsley Shacklebolt's been a real asset too. He's in charge of the hunt for Sirius, so he's been feeding the Ministry information that Sirius is in Tibet."

"But if none of you's putting the news out that Voldemort's back—" Harry started.

"Who said none of us was putting the news out? Why d'you think Dumbledore's in such trouble?" responded Sirius.

"What d'you mean?" asked Harry.

"They're trying to discredit him." explained Remus. "Didn't you see the Dailey Prophet last week? They reported that he'd been voted out of the Chairmanship of the International Confederation of Wizards because he's getting old and losing his grip, but it's not true, he was voted out by Ministry wizards after he made a speech announcing Voldemort's return. They've demoted him from Chief Warlock on the Wizengamot—that's the Wizard High Court—and they're talking about taking away his Order of Merlin, First Class, too."

Bill grinned. "But Dumbledore says he doesn't care what they do as long as they don't take him off the Chocolate Frog cards."

"It's no laughing matter," said Arthur sternly. "If he carried on defying the Ministry like this, he could end up in Azkaban and the last thing we want is Dumbledore locked up. While You-Know-Who knows Dumbledore's out there and wise to what he's up to, he's going to go cautiously for a while. If Dumbledore's out of the way—well, You-Know-Who will have a clear field."

Harry was still desperate for information. "But if Voldemort's trying to recruit more Death Eaters, it's bound to get out that he's come back, isn't it?"

Sirius frowned, "Voldemort doesn't march up to people's houses and bang on their front doors, Harry. He tricks, jinxes, and blackmails them. He's well-practiced at operating in secrecy. In any case, gathering followers is only one thing he's interested in, he's got other plans too, plans he can put into operation very quietly indeed, and he's concentrating on them at the moment."

I froze and glanced at Sirius. He was getting a little too close to telling Harry about the prophecy. "What's he after apart from followers?" Harry said at once.

Sirius and Remus glanced at each other.

"Stuff he can only get by stealth," Sirius said slowly. "Like a weapon. Something he didn't have last time."

"When he was powerful before?" clarified Harry.

"Yes." said Sirius.

"Like what kind of weapon? Something worse than the _Avada Kedavra_—?" Harry began.

"That's enough." said Molly. I was a little surprised, as I had not seen her return. "I want you in bed, now. All of you."

"You can't boss us—" started Fred, but was cut off by his mum.

"Watch me," Molly said, looking furious. She turned to Sirius. "You've given Harry plenty of information. Any more and you might just as well induct him into the Order straightaway."

"Why not?" Harry asked. "I'll join, I want to join, I want to fight—"

"No." said Remus sharply. "The Order is comprised only of overage wizards." Fred and George opened their mouths to argue. "Wizards who have left school. There are dangers involved of which you can have no idea, any of you . . . I think Molly's right, Sirius. We've said enough."

Sirius shrugged and Molly brought the kids upstairs.

I stood up. "Well, it's late and I have work tomorrow, so I'm going to go home. Night everyone." I yawned and walked towards the door. Remus walked with me.

"Night, Nymphadora." He said, smiling.

"I thought you'd decided to call me Tonks now?" I asked, annoyed.

"No, I like the name Nymphadora." Remus said.

"You do realize you're the only person in the whole world who does." I said, looking at him like he was an alien. I shook my head. "Anyway, I seriously have to go back now, Remus. Night." I smiled as I left. I went to Apparate back to my flat. As I went to sleep, I was still smiling.


	14. A Murderous Ghoul

**A/N: Set in August of the Order of the Phoenix**

Tonks's POV

Today was my day off of work. I had planned to spend it sleeping, but I was too hyper and lonely. So, my wandering feet brought me to Number 12, Grimmauld place. I went inside quietly and saw a bunch of people in the kitchen. Molly welcomed me and went to get me some food. I sat next to Sirius. Arthur was on duty tonight and Ginny was doing homework.

"Remus here?" I asked in what I hoped was a casual tone.

"No, why?" asked Sirius suspiciously.

"Because I want some chocolate," I said sarcastically. "Why wouldn't he be here?"

"Why would he?" asked Sirius cryptically.

"He stays here with you, so it makes sense for him to be here." I said slowly.

"Well, he's out right now." said Sirius as he took a plate of sandwiches from Molly.

I bit into a sandwich. It was really good. Before I knew it, the sandwiches were gone. I glanced up at Sirius.

"Wow, hungry?" He asked, grinning.

Molly looked pleased though. "Tonks, why don't you stay for the day? You can help us clean the house."

"Uh . . ." well, cleaning wasn't my thing, but I wasn't going to decline the offer. Besides, there is a bunch of dark stuff here. "Sure!" I said brightly.

"Good." Molly said.

I walked upstairs and into Ron and Harry's room. "Wotcher! I'm here to help you clean."

Hermione was talking to them, and she looked up. "Great. Mrs. Weasley wants us to investigate noises coming from the bathroom."

I raised my eyebrows, and Hermione seemed to realize what she said. She grew pink and started silently shaking with laughter. Ron and Harry just looked confused. I went over to the bathroom and opened the door. "It's not that bad—" I began to say, but stopped as I noticed the toilet seat rattling. I cautiously went over and opened it. Something came flying towards me. My Auror reflexes sent a shield charm up before I registered what had happened. I looked and saw a ghoul glaring at me. Usually ghouls are peacefully stupid, but this one was evil. I shut the door and ran down to get Sirius and Ginny. They wouldn't want to miss this.

So, the six of us were sitting in Ron and Harry's room, mapping out a plan.

"So, how should we get rid of it?" asked Sirius, who was sitting next to Harry and Ron on one bed. Me, Ginny, and Hermione were on the other bed.

"Well, we can't call the Ghoul Task Force," I said sarcastically. "It's in the toilet, so if we cut off the sewer system in that toilet, we can corner it and destroy it. Or make it leave."

"We can vanish the whole toilet?" suggested Ginny.

I thought about it, but shook my head. "We'll have to vanish the ghoul . . ."

"We have to set something up so it couldn't move." said Hermione.

"Like it could stuck in the pipes or something." said Ron.

"What are ghouls afraid of?"asked Harry.

"Well, this one is murderous, so probably nothing. . . maybe it just doesn't like us . . ." I frowned in thought. If the ghoul, like everything else here, didn't approve of metamorphmaguses, werewolves, and Sirius, then it should approve of a pure-blooded person related to the Blacks.

"But, we don't have any polyjuice potion or hair . . ." Hermione said, confused.

Sirius grinned. "But we do have a metamorphmagus."

I grinned back at him. Soon, I resembled the ugly and psychotic Bellatrix Lestrange.

"Ready, cousin?" asked Sirius.

"Oh, I'm ready." I replied, smirking. I walked into the bathroom, and opened the lid of the toilet. The ghoul rose up, and then paused. "Ugh, a nasty ghoul," I said, mimicking Bellatrix. I sighed. "A little nasty ghoul. I'm not afraid of you." I paced, twirling my wand around. The ghoul started retreating back into the toilet.

It was almost there when I heard Ron call out in encouragement "Nice!" Then Sirius yelled at Ron. The ghoul paused, doubtful. Then Hermione had to lovely idea to yell "Not now Sirius, Tonks is concentrating." If ghouls could realize that they fell for a trap, this one did. Just as he started to react, I shot a stunning spell at him. As expected it bounced off.

"I could use some help over here!" I yelled as the ghoul started attacking me. My hair had inadvertently turned pink. Ginny, Hermione, Harry, Ron, and Sirius ran forward. Soon, the air was filled with spells. Hermione had this idea of all of stunning the ghoul at once. It would have worked, if the ghoul hadn't flown away at the last possible second. A glass cup shattered over my head. Ginny narrowed avoided a bottle of foul smelling liquids. Hermione shot a clever spell at the ghoul, but it hit the mirror and exploded. I dove to the ground, pulling Hermione and Ginny down with me. I hear another thud and saw Sirius holding Ron and Harry to the ground.

I hesitantly looked up and saw the ghoul looking triumphant. My hand turned to point my wand at the ghoul and I shot a nonverbal spell right at the ghouls face. The ghoul slammed into the wall. I sprung up and vanished him.

I turned back around and grinned as Sirius stood up. With a sweep of his wand, he repaired the bathroom. "And that is how you get rid of a ghoul," I said.


	15. Author's Note

**A/N: Hi all readers (if there are any). Anyway, I'm trying to keep up with this story, but it's hard. I'm super busy and have a ton of activities and work. So, I'll try to upload a chapter every week. I usually try for one every few days, but this story is super long, so it'll be stretched out for a while. Also, please review so I know someone is reading this.**


	16. The Beginning of Something Great

**A/N: Set the day before Harry's hearing and onward**

Tonks's POV

I scribbled something illegible down on my report. Glancing up, I could see Dawlish scowling at me. My hair was black in a cute pixie cut that got longer and messier as the day wore on. Proudfoot was talking to Williamson. I turned my back on those two and tried to finish up. I was late for a meeting.

"In a hurry, Nymphadora?" asked Dawlish, casually.

I froze and counted to ten, mastering my anger. "No, I want to spend all night filling out reports here." I said sarcastically and coolly. Dawlish didn't respond. Wanting to get away from most of the people in here, I walked out. That is when I ran into Arthur.

"Oops, sorry sir." I said innocently.

"Don't worry, it was my bad." Arthur said politely. As he passed, he whispered. "I'll cover for you, don't worry." I didn't nod, and I continued on my way.

Coming back, I was stopped by Scrimgeour. "Tonks, may I talk to you?"

"Sure." I said.

"It seems you are more tired than usual. Now, if it's the amount of work, I can help that."

To an untrained Auror, one might find this question helpful. I knew that if I said the work was fine, he'll know that something else is up. So, I quickly lied. "Yeah, the work is just pilling up. You decide to not do one night of work and suddenly it's a tide of papers coming at you."

Scrimgeour nodded. "Alright, I'll see to that. Anything else in your schedule? You seem oddly happy."

I raised my eyebrows. "There are a lot of reasons why I could be happy, Scrimgeour." I said slowly. His face grew red with anger, but he nodded and left. I walked past Kingsley, who seemed to know what I was going through. "You too?" he asked quietly as I passed by. I nodded, still thinking. Yeah, I was a lot happier, but why? Not just because I joined the Order but because of something else.

I was hoping to just quietly sneak into the meeting and sit down without being too noticed. That worked, up until Severus saw me. He was in the middle of a report when I entered.

"Aw, Nymphadora, finally here. Trouble at the ministry?" He asked snidely.

"No, just one of those days with millions of papers," I said, glaring at him. He knew I hated my name, and he still used it. I sat down to next to Sirius, and crossed my arms. I glanced next to me and saw that Sirius was doing the same thing. Without him knowing, I changed my hair and face to match his. Remus, who was sitting across from us, was chuckling.

Severus continued his report about the dangers of his job. Ahem, he was a teacher in Hogwarts, under Dumbledore! He wasn't a spy right in the ministry itself. He wasn't an Auror! But apparently he was very important. Severus's monotone was very successful in making me sleepy. So successful that I managed to fall asleep right then and there at the meeting. I was dreaming about Quidditch when I was shaken awake.

"Wha?"

"Meeting's over, Nymphadora."

I blinked my eyes and Remus came into focus.

"How long was I asleep for?"

"Well, Severus's monotone continued for another hour. You weren't the only one that fell asleep." Remus said, smiling.

I nodded, too embarrassed to get mad at Remus for calling me Nymphadora. "Great and Dumbledore probably thought I was a terrible worker."

"Actually, most of us were amused. Especially since your snoring drowned out parts of Severus's lecture on stealth. He was annoyed, of course, and kept dropping hints at your expulsion from the Order. Kingsley then just reminded us that our reports were due next meeting and that the schedule for guard duty had been changed. You're on for tomorrow night."

"Well, then I should probably get a good night's sleep tomorrow. Eh, I may not go in for work at all tomorrow." I said.

"Tonks, dear," I turned to see Molly coming up to me. "If you are really that tired, you can stay here tonight. There's an extra room across from Remus's. He can show you."

"Ok, thanks Molly!" I said brightly.

I walked up the steps and into my room. "Ugh, it's so drab and dark." I crinkled my nose and walked around. I looked at Remus, who had chuckled. "It's just for tonight."

"So? I can afford to be picky." I crossed my arms and sat on my bed. He sat down next to me.

"Sorry about Severus, he's snide sometimes."

"Of course he is. He still treats me like a student! I don't know how you tolerate him."

"He helped me with the wolfsbane potion, so I don't hate him. Although, too much tension with him, James, and Sirius caused him to—"

"—hate you. He hates you, and you should hate him, Remus. It's how it works."

Remus chuckled. "Just tell me if Severus bothers you. He should know better."

"If he had a brain in that slimy head of his," I muttered.

Remus smiled sympathetically. "Don't worry about it, just ignore him."

I shrugged and played with the hem of my shirt. A piece of thread had gotten loose. I took it and ripped it off. "Do you have to call me Nymphadora." Weird subject change, I know, but that had been bothering me for a while.

"Well, I'm not going to call you Tonks. What about your middle name?"

I shuddered. "It's Vulpecula. Never call me that."

Remus laughed. "Don't worry, I won't. Well, night Nymphadora." He got up and left before I could yell at him.

I closed the door and went to lie on my bed, confused. I was thinking all through the night and managed to get 1 minute of sleep. I was happy with my conversation with Remus.

I looked at the clock. It read 4:00am, and I figured I'll just grab some coffee downstairs and then head to my flat. I went down to the kitchen and was surprised to see Sirius and Remus down there.

"What are you guys doing up?" I asked, sitting down next to Remus. Sirius smirked, and I had the feeling that I missed something. Before I could respond, Molly came downstairs.

"I heard voices. I didn't know breakfast was this early." she said. Before we could protest, she started baking. The smell was so wonderful, I smiled. "Arthur will be down shortly. It's Harry's hearing, today." Molly said, putting some toast on the table.

I grabbed one, and started to butter it. "Harry will be fine, Sirius, don't worry." I said to a worried Sirius. "I just hope Fudge isn't there at the hearing." I added, taking a bite of toast. Molly sighed and sat down across from Sirius as Arthur came downstairs. He was looking cheery. Well, as cheery as anyone can be before the sun is up.

"I was going to head back to my flat, Molly." I said.

"Are you sure, dear? Well, at least have some breakfast." I smiled and took some sausages. I looked up to see Sirius staring at me. "Yes?" I asked.

"Nothing, just wondering," He replied casually. I narrowed my eyes. I was a naturally curious person and being an Auror didn't help. "Sirius." I said.

"I was just wondering why Remus—" Sirius started, but was interrupted by a cough from Remus. I glanced at him and turned back to Sirius.

"Why Remus what?" I asked, pausing to yawn.

"Why Remus had a crush on you, of course." Sirius replied evilly. I resisted the temptation to raise my eyebrows in shock, but secretly I was kind of pleased. I knew though that Sirius wanted to shock me and see my reaction.

"So what if he had a crush on me? Oh cousin, you really are ignorant." I said sadly, shaking my head.

"And why am I ignorant?" asked Sirius.

"Because it's not like it just happened. We could have been secretly dating for months, and you would have no idea. So, it really isn't a shock. Sorry to burst your bubble." I explained. I could see Remus go red, and then I realized what I said. My hair turned bright red to match my face.

"So you are secretly dating?" asked Sirius quickly.

"No, it was just an 'if' example. Calm down, Sirius." I said. Molly and Arthur had thankfully been quiet the whole time. I used this opportunity to change my hair. I glanced at my watch. It was 5:00am. I had to leave in for work in an hour. I changed my hair into blonde and curly. Sirius raised his eyebrows.

"I do different hairstyles for work, relax Drama Queen." I said.

"Oh, okay." said Sirius, disbelieving.

"Sirius? Do us a favor and shut up." I yawned. "Besides, aren't you glad you're working with your cousin?"

"Thrilled," Sirius said sarcastically, drinking some coffee.

I turned to Remus. "I'm surprised that hanging around Sirius hasn't made you as gloomy as he is." Sirius snorted. I was glad the conversation turned to Sirius.

"How are the Aurors lately?" asked Arthur.

"Eh. Most of them don't think Fudge is right, I can totally tell, but they're too afraid to say anything. Besides, I don't want to accidently give away my position. Dawlish totally suspects me, just because I –"

"—openly disagreed with Fudge and have been changing your moods." finished Arthur. "Be careful with Dawlish, he's dangerous. Also Scrimgeour, for that matter too."

"Don't need to tell me twice," I muttered. I glanced at Remus, who was eating some chocolate. "Uh, where did you get the chocolate?"

"I have a supply," said Remus, handing me a piece. I wanted to laugh, but I didn't as I ate some chocolate.

"So, how are the m-m-muggle artifacts?" I asked Arthur, as I yawned.

"Pretty good. We are having this trouble with this backfiring toilet." He explained. Sirius and I both snorted.

"Lovely job, Arthur." said Sirius, turning back to me and Remus. "Well, when you two start dating, let me know."

I opened my mouth to retort when the door opened. Harry stood in the hallway, looking anxious.

"Breakfast," said Molly, going to get some food for Harry.

"M-m-morning, Harry." I yawned. "Sleep all right?"

"Yeah," he said.

"I've b-b-been up all night," I said, not being able to control my yawns. "Come and sit down." I pulled out a chair next to me, knocking over another one.

"What do you want, Harry? Porridge? Muffins? Kippers? Bacon and eggs? Toast?" called Molly.

"Just—just toast, thanks." Harry said nervously. I felt bad for him. Remus glanced at him in a fatherly way and turned to me. "What were you saying about Scrimgeour?"

My brain froze. "Oh . . . yeah . . . well, we need to be a bit more careful, he's been asking Kingsley and me funny questions. He's very suspicious. I had so much work this week, I can't get any sleep and I'll have to tell Dumbledore I can't do night duty tomorrow, I'm just t-t-too tired." I finished out with a yawn.

"I'll cover for you. I'm okay, I've got a report to finish anyway and I can use the extra time." Arthur said, and then turned to Harry. "How are you feeling?" he asked, and he got a shrug in response. "It'll all be over soon. In a few hours' time you'll be cleared. The hearing's on my floor, in Amelia Bones's office. She's Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and she's the one who'll be questioning you."

"Amelia Bones is okay, Harry. She's fair, she'll hear you out." I said, smiling.

"Don't lose your temper. Be polite and stick to the facts." Sirius said.

Remus spoke up, "The law's on your side. Even underage wizards are allowed to use magic in life-threatening situations."

Molly, meanwhile, was trying to comb Harry's hair. "Doesn't it ever lie flat?" she asked. The response was a no.

"I think we'll go now," Arthur said, checking his watch. "We're a bit early, but I think you'll be better off there than hanging around here."

"Okay," Harry said, rather like a robot.

"You'll be all right, Harry." I said as I patted him on the arm.

"Good luck. I'm sure it will be fine," Remus said quietly.

"And if it's not, I'll see to Amelia Bones for you, trust me." Sirius said darkly.

Molly hugged Harry. "We've all got our fingers crossed."

"Right. Well . . . see you later." Harry said and left with Arthur.

I glanced at my watch again. I really had to go. "Well, see you guys later for the next meeting." I got up and left. I was surprised to see that Remus was following me. We got to the door.

"Sorry about embarrassing you." I said quickly.

"It's fine. I'm sorry about Sirius." He said quietly, looking down.

"Don't worry about him, it's good for him to experience some drama. You know, so he doesn't die of boredom."

Remus smiled. "Yeah. Well, bye. Good luck at work." He kissed me on the cheek and left.


	17. Party

**A/N: PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE REVIEW. I don't know if anyone is actually reading this.**

Tonks's POV

Arthur Weasley gave me the invite secretly. I wanted to look at it now, but there were a ton of other people there, so I just slipped it into a very secret place that no one will ever look for, and I continued my day. Walking out, I looked at the invite. On it was a set of handwriting.

_Ron and Hermione are Prefects! Dinner party to celebrate their great achievement_

I smiled and put the invite back. A dinner party sounded very fun and it gave me an excellent excuse to talk to someone. I walked with Kingsley to headquarters, chatting about the party. I was surprised to see Remus already there, about to walk in. He paused for a second. Kingsley walked inside, leaving me and Remus alone.

"Uh hey." I said nervously. I hadn't talked to Remus since the morning before the hearing. "What's up?"

"Nothing, just wondering . . ." he trailed off.

"About what?" I asked.

"About how, if you didn't mind, we could . . ." he trailed off again.

I raised my eyebrow. "Remus, are you asking me out? If so, then the answer is yes." I smiled. "Relax; I'm not going to hex you."

Remus smiled. "So, um, shall we?" He held out his arm. Blushing, I took it. Remus chuckled. I took a lock of my hair, and it held it before my eyes. Tomato red. Shrugging, I changed my hair to waist-length and tomato red and entered Sirius's house. Kingsley was talking to Sirius as we walked into the kitchen. Sirius raised his eyebrows.

"I thought you two weren't secretly dating." He asked, suspiciously.

"We weren't dating 19 days ago. But we are now. And it's not a secret." I said, sitting down. Remus sat down next to me.

Sirius sighed. "I'm going to miss them." He said, referring to the kids.

"Yeah." I said. "It was so much fun hanging out with them. They're so lively."

Kingsley sat on the other side of Sirius. "You can still keep in touch with them through coded letters."

I nodded as Harry, Ron, Hermione, Fred, George, and Ginny came downstairs. They all grabbed some butterbeers when Mad-Eye came in.

"Oh, Alastor, I am glad you're here." Molly said. "We've been wanting to ask you for ages—could you have a look in the writing desk in the drawing room and tell us what's inside it? We haven't wanted to open it just in case it's something really nasty."

Mad-Eye nodded and his small eye began to look at it. "No problem Molly . . . Drawing room . . . Desk in the corner? Yeah, I see it . . . yeah, it's a boggart . . . Want me to go up and get rid of it, Molly?"

Molly shook her head. "No, no, I'll do it myself later. You have your drink. We're having a bit of a celebration, actually . . . Fourth prefect in the family!" She smiled at Ron.

"Prefect, eh?" Mad-Eye said, turning to Ron. "Well, congratulations, authority figures always attract trouble, but I suppose Dumbledore thinks you can withstand most major jinxes or he wouldn't have appointed you . . ."

Ron was a little anxious. I snorted at Mad-Eye's comment, as Bill and Arthur arrived. "Well, I think a toast is in order." said Arthur. "To Ron and Hermione, the new Gryffindor prefects!"

We all drank to them. "I was never a prefect myself," I said cheerily. "My Head of House said I lacked certain necessary qualities."

"Like what?" Ginny asked.

I grinned. "Like the ability to behave myself." Ginny laughed and even Hermione choked on some butterbeer.

"What about you, Sirius." asked Ginny.

Sirius's laugh was similar to that of a dog's bark. "No one would have made me a prefect, I spent too much time in detention with James. Lupin was the good boy, he got the badge."

"I think Dumbledore might have hoped that I would be able to exercise some control of my best friends." Remus said. "I need scarcely say that I failed dismally."

I didn't know Remus was a prefect. Smiling, I winked at him. The wink went unnoticed as the party really began. I grabbed some food, and went over to talk to Ron. All he could talk about was his new broom, a present for becoming a prefect. "It's so fast, naught to seventy in ten seconds, not bad, is it? When you think about the Comet Two Ninety's only naught sixty and that's with a decent tailwind according to _Which Broomstick_?"

"Yeah, the speed does seem cool." I said, eating. "The Cleansweep series is really good. Much better than the Comet series. Of course, nothing beats the Nimbus or the Firebolt, but those two are so expensive." I found Remus talking to Hermione. "Cleansweeps are good for people who don't want to give up all their money for a broom, but still want a good one. Nice choice."

Ron grinned. "Thanks. I mean, I do think the Cleansweeps are pretty good. Besides, it's nice having a new broom for a change."

I nodded, embarrassed that I had a Comet Two Sixty. Still, it was nice chatting about something so normal. I looked around for Remus again, he was talking to Kingsley.

"Let me guess, you already examined your new broom?" I asked, smiling. I knew what it was like to be a kid, I just grew out of it, to be honest.

"Yeah, it's so amazing!" said Ron. "It's much better than the Comet, in every way. The handle's made ou of Spanish oak with an anti-jinx vanish and in-built vibration control—"

He paused as Molly yawned. "Well, I think I'll sort out that boggart before I turn in . . . Arthur, I don't want this lot up too late, all right? Night, Harry, dear."

Molly left. I walked over to Hermione and Ginny. "Hey, what's up?"

"Nothing. Love your hair." said Ginny.

"Thanks, but I copied it off of someone," I grinned.

Hermione couldn't stop smiling.

"You should be proud to be a prefect." I said. "Only people with 'certain necessary qualities' can be prefects."

We all laughed. "Have fun at Hogwarts." I said. "I miss that place."

"Oh, when did you graduate?" asked Hermione.

"Right before you entered, apparently." I said.

Ginny smiled. "It's like having an older sister." I chuckled. I wasn't the best role model in the world, but it seemed like both of these girls needed an older sister.

"Yeah, and I am here for you two." I hugged them both. Arthur sighed. I looked around and was surprised to see that Mad-Eye, Sirius, and Remus had gone.

"All right, it's time for everyone to get some sleep." He said. I said goodnight to Ginny and Hermione. I waited downstairs for Remus.

"What happened?" I asked, curiously.

"Boggart issues, everything's fine now," he said. I shrugged and hugged him. "Good night Remus."

"Night, Nymphadora."


	18. Close Together

Tonks's POV

All I wanted to do was sleep. But I got awaken by Mad-Eye's patronus.

_Tonks, just reminding you that you're a part of the guard that's sending the kids back to Hogwarts. Be outside headquarters on time. Sturgis is not responding to any of my patronuses._

I snarled at the patronus. I did not like being awakened early. Sighing, I went to get ready. I decided on an old lady disguise. I wore a purple suit with a matching hat. My hair was tightly curled and gray. I had brown eyes and wrinkles. It wasn't my best, but what did Mad-Eye expect? He woke me up at the crack of dawn and was like 'oh, create a super disguise.'

I Apparated to the street and was waiting there for what I considered to be a while. I kept checking my watch. They were really running behind. Finally, Molly, Harry, and Sirius, in dog form, came out.

"Wotcher, Harry," I winked. "Better hurry up, hadn't we, Molly?" I asked, checking my watch again.

"I know, I know, but Mad-Eye wanted to wait for Sturgis . . . If only Arthur could have got us cars from the Ministry again . . . but Fudge wouldn't let him borrow so much as an empty ink bottle these days . . . _How_ Muggles can stand traveling without magic . . ." Molly complained. Sirius, however, was enjoying himself. I couldn't help but grin at my cousin.

It took us forever to get to King's Cross. Once there, we got to Platform 9 ¾, safely. Molly was nervous, as usual. "I hope the others make it in time."

Meanwhile, Harry was chatting with his friends.

"Nice dog, Harry!"

"Thanks, Lee."

Mad-Eye came with all the luggage, Molly saw first. "Oh good, here's Alastor with the luggage, look . . ." Mad-Eye came up to me and Molly. "All okay. Don't think we were followed."

Arthur, Ron, Hermione, Fred, George, Ginny, and Remus came next.

"No trouble?" asked Mad-Eye.

"Nothing," replied Remus.

"I'll still be reporting Sturgis to Dumbledore. That's the second time he's not turned up in a week. Getting as unreliable as Mundungus." muttered Mad-Eye, annoyed.

Then it was time for good-byes. I hugged Hermione and Ginny. "It's been great meeting all of you. We'll see you soon, I expect."

A whistle sounded. All the kids were rushed onto the train.

"See you!" shouted Harry as the train sped away.

We all headed back to headquarters. Molly immediately yelled at Sirius, but it just bounced off of him. Yet, Sirius seemed a little glum. I smiled sympathetically. I was going to miss Hermione and Ginny.

I was busy all day long, running errands and taking care of stuff like Muggle bills and Order work. I was just walking home when I ran into Remus.

"Oh, Remus, what are you doing out this late?"

"I had to check some stuff and search for Sturgis. And then I got held up. You?"

"Errands here, errands there, errands every bloody where! I seriously need to get some sleep. What is it, 1 in the morning?"

Remus chuckled. "About."

"Well, I'm heading to my flat. Where are you going?"

"Back to headquarters."

"Don't be stupid. My flat is much closer, why don't you stay there?"

Remus hesitated. "Uh, I don't know about that. . ."

I laughed. "I meant I would take the couch, and you could take me bed. Dirty mind, eh, Remus?"

"Now you're being stupid. I insist I take the couch. You can have your bed."

"Fine." I muttered, walking to my flat. Remus followed, keeping up with my brisk pace. "You try to be nice, but noooo the Gryffindor boy has to be chivalrous." I muttered, unlocking my door.

Remus chuckled. "Since when is being chivalrous bad?"

I shrugged, but didn't reply. I put blankets and pillows on the couch. "Night Remus. Just to warn you, I have work at 6am. So I'll be up and about at like 5:30am."

"Night, Nymphadora." He said, taking off his coat. I glared sharply at him, but was too tired to retort. I went to my bed, and fell asleep almost at once.

Unfortunately, I woke up at about 3am, hungry. Not wanting to disturb Remus's sleep, I crept quietly to the kitchen in the dark. Of course I managed to trip over my shoes, which were lying around, and fell crashing to the ground, hitting the table on the way. Plus I managed to knock over a bunch of pots and pans. I heard Remus spring up and the lights turned on.

"Who's there!?" he asked sharply.

It occurred to me that he thought I was a burglar or a Death Eater. "Tonks!"

"Prove it," said Remus, not faltering.

I took a deep breath before uttering my awful middle name. "Vulpecula," I mutterd bitterly.

Remus relaxed, and helped me up. "So, what are you doing crashing around the kitchen at this hour?"

"I was hungry." I said, going to get cereal. "And I didn't want to wake you."

"Well that didn't work, did it?" asked Remus.

I made my cereal and started to eat it. "So, what's up?"

"You mean besides being awakened? Nothing really. I'm still trying to figure out a name for you that we can both agree on."

I swallowed my cereal. "And?"

"Well, I got Nymphie, Phado, Adory, Dora, Vully, Pecu, Cula, Ula, and La." said Remus, sitting on the couch.

I sat down next to him. "Wow, I almost prefer Nymphadora and Vulpecula to those names." I said.

Remus's POV

I chuckled. Nymphadora finished her cereal, and set it on the table. She yawned, giving me a fantastic view of all of her teeth (notice the sarcasm). "No cavities, nice." I said.

"Oh shut up," she muttered, curling up into a ball. It was surprising how fast she could fall asleep. Soon she was completely asleep. I was surprised to see her hair change a bit. Not a lot, but just enough to be noticeable. I just watched her hair change colors, going from the gray of the day to a nice brown-ish color, then going into red, then fading into orange and finally yellow. I smiled and closed my eyes, drifting off into the nicest sleep I have had for a while.


	19. Chatting with Friends

Tonks's POV

I was getting sick. Too many late nights at work, and the weather was getting colder. So, after my 50th sneeze at work, Williamson ordered me to take a sick leave at once. I had no objection, so I left right away and made my way to my flat. My flat was so boring, I left and kept walking. I was mildly surprised to find myself in front of headquarters.

I entered it and made my way to the kitchen. Inside were Remus and Sirius.

"What's up?" I asked, sitting down. My hair was windswept and the color of leaves in the fall, all yellow and orange and red. I noticed that there was a letter on the table. "Who's that from?" I asked, curious.

"Harry," said Sirius. He cleared his throat and read from the letter.

"_Dear Snuffles,_

_Hope you're okay, the first week back here's been terrible, I'm really glad it's the weekend. We've got a new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher Professor Umbridge. She's nearly as nice as your mum. I'm writing because that thing I wrote to you about last summer happened again last night when I was doing a detention with Umbridge. We're all missing our biggest friend, we hope he'll be back soon. Please write back quickly._

_Best,_

_Harry"_

Sirius seemed a little worried. I grimaced. I knew Umbridge from the ministry, and I had the luck to never meet with her face to face. I glanced at Remus and was surprised to see pure loathing on his face. I looked back to Sirius.

"Remus knows Umbridge," said Sirius.

"Yes, I do. I know all about her and her views on _half-breeds_," Remus said bitterly.

"What did she do? I swear I'll hex her—" I began, but Sirius cut me off. "—and you're explanation would be that you found out through a secret order that is getting ready to fight Voldemort." I flinched at the name, and I knew Sirius was right. I shouldn't get involved. I sighed and waited for Remus to continue.

"Umbridge believes that half-breeds aren't supposed to work." Remus said the hatred in his voice apparent. "That little. . ."

I was very impressed at Remus's cursing. I was also surprised in where he learned all of that. But then, I guess having a friend like Sirius gives you a large vocabulary of them.

"If you're done," I said, cutting across Remus, "let's talk about something else. Like Sturgis."

Sirius nodded. "I have no idea what happened or how he was caught. Or why he was trying to get through that door. Dumbledore has a couple of ideas. Mostly, Sturgis was Imperiused."

"Who could have Imperiused him?" I said.

"Anyone in the ministry," said Sirius.

Remus had calmed down enough by then. "Unfortunately, this is just twisting Fudge's mind even more. We're going have to be more careful now. Which, by the way, leaving work early is not being more careful," Remus finished, raising his eyebrows.

I snorted. "It's called a sick leave, Remus. Change of weather isn't the best for your immune system."

Sirius rolled his eyes. "At least you can go outside." He looked at the letter again. "Hmmmm, Hagrid isn't back yet?"

Remus frowned. "The giants must have been trouble."

"But it's been all summer," I pointed out. "And Maxime is back already."

"Hagrid probably took a detour," said Sirius. "Hagrid is half-giant, he can take care of himself."

"Why aren't you worried about this?! They're_ giants_!" I said, fiercely. "Hagrid could be squashed and he can't even use magic. Maxime isn't even with him anymore!"

"I'm a little preoccupied with what's happening at Hogwarts with Harry and the rest of them!" said Sirius. "Umbridge is a foul witch –"

"—who wouldn't do anything fatal! Yeah, Umbridge is nasty, but she's the kind of enemy that you need to just ignore. She'll leave as soon as Fudge realizes—"

"—But how long will that take!? It could be years, Tonks, years!" said Sirius.

I raised my eyebrows. "One year at the most. Remember, that post Umbridge is in is jinxed. It was jinxed when I was at Hogwarts too."

"Still, a year . . ." said Sirius.

I got up to leave, but Remus stopped me. "Listen, you two, both of you are right in the important issues. There's nothing we can do about either. So calm down."

I sat down. "Okay, Sirius, I'm sorry for losing my head."

Sirius nodded. "I'm sorry too. Happy, Remus?" he asked sarcastically.

Remus nodded, "Very," he said, sitting, "Now, can we continue this discussion or should I put you two in time-out?"

Sirius leaned close to me. "I would not want to have Remus as a teacher." I nodded eyes wide.

Remus laughed. "You two aren't scared of me, don't pretend."

"Well, I wasted a good portion of the day that could have spent sleeping." I got up, "Bye."

Remus was about to stand up, but a look from Sirius stopped him.

"See ya," he said. Sirius said bye as well and I left.


	20. Secret Organization

**A/N: Sorry about all the grammar and spelling errors in my chapters.**

Remus's POV

I sighed as I sat down at the kitchen table. Sirius, Molly, and Arthur were already there. So was Severus.

"Ah Lupin, I made your potion," Severus said, smirking.

I nodded and took my gobletful of the day. It tasted worse than dungbombs (long story) and I nearly gagged on it. At least it was the last time I had to drink it for a month. Tonight was the transformation. I had planned to retire to my bedroom early when Mundungus arrived.

"I got news," he said, smiling his mischievous grin. I frowned, unsure whether I wanted to hear this. Knowing Mundungus, it was probably about a rip off he made or something like that. I sat back, listening carefully. Just as Mundungus opened his mouth, the door opened again.

Nymphadora came walking in. She was bundled up in gloves, a hat, and a scarf. Her face was bright red from the cold. She sat down and Molly immediately got her a cup of tea. She smiled stiffly in thanks.

"Cold?" I asked. She nodded vigourously.

"I didn't trust myself to Apparate so I walked." She said, shivering.

"Well, you're just in time to hear Mundungus's news." I smiled and turned to Mundungus, who was getting impatient.

"So, I was at the 'Og's 'Ead, watch'n 'Arry like you told me—" began Mundungus. Sirius snorted and Tonks rolled her eyes. "I was disguis'd as a witch un'er a veil!" said Mundungus. "Guess who comes in? 'Arry, Ron, an Hermione. An a bunch of their friends. Guess what their plann'n?" He waited until we were all staring intently at him.

"Tell us or I'll pour Vertiserum in all of your lousy drinks," muttered Nymphadora so only I could hear. I chuckled.

"They're form'n a secret Defense Against the Dark Arts group!" said Mundungus, excitedly. He started to cackle. He wiped laughing tears from his eyes. "Well, I gotta deal to get to, see ya." He left, strategically before Molly exploded.

"Well, I'm going to check in on Harry, Ron, and Hermione tonight," said Sirius. "Using floo network."

Molly stood up. "Can you pass on a message to Ron?" Sirius wasn't an idiot to argue. "Swear that you'll pass on this message." She took a deep breath, "He is on no account whatsoever are you to take part in an illegal secret Defense Against the Dark Arts group. He'll be expelled for sure and his future will be ruined. There will be plenty of time for him to defend himself later and he is too young to be worrying about that right now. I also advise Harry and Hermione not to proceed with the group, although I have no authority over either of them, I simply beg them to remember that I have their best interests at heart." She was red in the face. "I can't write this down, but the owls could have been intercepted."

"Why don't you tell them yourself?" asked Sirius.

"I have duty tonight. In fact, I should be going," Molly cleaned up and left. Arthur declared that he was tired and that he was going to bed.

"So, what do you guys think?" asked Nymphadora excitedly.

"I think it's an excellent idea," said Sirius, "don't you agree, Moony?"

"Certianly, Padfoot," I nodded.

"I would totally love to form a secret group," said Nymphadora.

"Yeah, cause it's not like you're in a secret order yourself," replied Sirius, sarcastically. Nymphadora made a face, and I started to chuckle again.

"Well, I hate to leave, but it's getting late and I should be going to bed now." I said, getting up. "It's a full moon tonight," I said to Nymphadora's confused face. She was kind of cute when she was confused. Her face cleared and she nodded. I smiled sadly and left.

Sirius's POV

I watched my best friend walk up the steps. I sighed sadly. Remus was the nicest guy you'll ever meet, yet he had the worst luck. I glanced at Tonks. Maybe not the worst luck. Tonks sighed, and got up. "It is getting late. You should go talk to the kids now."

I walked over to the fireplace. "Bye Tonks,"

"Bye Sirius," said Tonks, as she left. Tonks will be good for Remus. They said they were dating, but they just need one little push . . .


	21. Date

**A/N: Thank you for the reviews! **

Tonks's POV

I am going to kill Sirius Black. He is not a matchmaker extraordinaire, no matter what he thinks. For example, Remus and I are perfectly happy. Sirius simply doesn't get this. He feels that we need to go on a date, in the muggle world. Remus and I were doing fine, our relationship slowly getting more romantic. Yet, Sirius wants to push it. My complaint is that if he pushes it too far, things may fall apart. And that'll be awful.

It all started when I went over to headquarters for lunch. Sirius, Remus, Molly, and Arthur were there too. It was going along great, until Sirius opened his mouth.

"Just so you two know, you're going on a date."

"What?!" I asked, choking.

"Molly and Arthur got some Muggle money for you two and you can go to a fancy schmancy Muggle restaurant."

"And what makes you think you can just force us to go on a date?" I glared at Sirius.

Sirius rolled his eyes. I glanced at Remus. His face was red like mine, but it was red with embarrassment, not anger. And what if the date did go well? I frowned, not sure that I wanted to take the risks. Molly smiled and stood up.

"Come on Tonks, I'll help you pick out a nice outfit," she said. I nodded.

The rest of the afternoon was spent with Molly at my flat while she tried to find an outfit for me. I was so nervous that I really wasn't any help. Finally, Molly picked out this really cute outfit. It was a skirt that was blue, yet it was all shimmery and looked like a kaleidoscope with mostly blue. Molly also picked out a white sweater with spots of blue around the edges of it. The sweater was long-sleeved and v-necked. The shoes were simple white sandals. It was cute and fancy.

"Wow, thanks Molly!"

"You're welcome, dear," Molly said fondly. "Now, what should your hair look like? I was thing going natural."

"No." I said. I sighed, "my real hair is just awful. I'll go with long curly brown hair though."

"Alright, Tonks, dear." said Molly, as I changed my hair. I kept my natural face and eyes though.

Soon I was all ready to go. I met Remus outside of headquarters, and we walked to the Muggle restaurant.

"Sooooo" I said, searching for words.

Remus smiled. We sat down at a table and ordered some water.

"Why do they want us together so much?" yes, that was the first thing out of my mouth. If I was Remus, I would dump me right then for being lousy, but Remus isn't like that.

"You know why," he said, smiling.

Yes, I do know why. There really isn't any good love story here in the middle of a war, or at least close to the beginning of one. It's nice to see two close friends falling in love.

It was less awkward then I'd thought it was going to be. I had some really nice pasta.

"Hey, I got to go to the bathroom." I stood up and left Remus behind, chuckling at my sophisticated exit. I got back and glanced at the time. It was getting really late, and we were finished our dinner. "Are you going to let me have dessert?"

"Depends on if there's chocolate in it," Remus joked. So we split a slice of chocolate cake. We continued the small chat through dessert, talking about our families. We paid the bill, and by we I mean Remus, and left. Sure enough, it started to rain.

"Great, this is just great," I muttered, annoyed at the sky. My hair was plastered to my face and neck, and my sweater was soaked.

Remus took of his jacket and put it on me. He walked with me all the way to my flat. I smiled. "Thanks."

He shrugged. "I had fun." Lightning crackled in the distance. It was pouring now. We were just about to kiss when thunder boomed right above us. We both jumped back in shock. Remus chuckled.

"Night Nymphadora."

"You know, you should really stop calling me that. Proudfoot called me that one day and I hexed him. I got into a lot of trouble, yet my reputation holds on."

Remus smiled and left.

I sighed and walked into my flat and closed the door. I got changed into warm pajamas, but I just dried out Remus's coat by magic. It smelled like him. As I fell asleep, I couldn't help but think that Sirius was right after all. We just needed a push.


	22. First kiss

Tonks's POV

I woke this morning to come by a very nice surprise. Snow. It was a blizzard out there. I bundled up in a scarf, a hat, mittens, and three coats. I Apparated to outside of headquarters. It was freezing! My hair turned icy blue, actually going to white at the ends. I was surprised to see Remus walking out of Headquarters.

"Hey, where are you going?" I asked, shivering.

"Just taking a walk. It's boring in there. Molly and Arthur are away and Sirius is taking care of Buckbeak."

"Well, looks like you need to become excited." I said, throwing a snowball at him. He blinked once and then threw a snowball back. Soon we were in a full out snowball battle. Both of us were pretty good, so it was an even fight.

After the fight, we were exhausted. There was a little snow bank there, so we laid there and just stared up at the sky. The snowflakes were swirling down from up above, and it looked so peaceful. It was a beautiful moment, not to send really cheesy. Remus smiled at me, a really cute smile that could melt ice.

It was getting colder as the sun went down, so we headed inside. We stood right inside the house, really close. We were both soaked from the melted snow and our faces were red from the cold. Totally unprepared for this, he leaned down and kissed me.

I sort of forgot what happened afterwards. I remember walking towards the kitchen and talking with Sirius. Then I remember Remus kissing my goodnight and I left. Somehow I got home and in my bed. I went to sleep smiling.


	23. Snake attack

Tonks's POV

I was fast asleep, when I felt a nice warm glow in the room. I opened one eye and saw a lynx stare at me. Grumbling, I got up and turned on the light. Kingsley's patronus began talking-

_Arthur was gravely injured at duty. Harry saw it happen. We are going to talk to Arthur tomorrow, please join us._

If I wasn't awake yet, I was awake now. I threw off my covers and was halfway through the door, when I realize that 1) I was still in my pajamas 2) It was the middle of the night, which would be suspicious and 3) Kingsley has it under control and I'll be able to find out stuff later. I got back in my bed and shut the light off. I shuddered to think how Arthur was gravely injured. As I fell asleep, my mind traveled to an image of an evil snake.

It felt like forever, but finally I was able to see Arthur. I waited with Mad-Eye, humming around and tapping my foot. I had Muggle wear on, meaning jeans, but my hair was a bright bubble-gum pink. Mad-Eye was being paranoid as usual. The thing that intrigued me the most was how Harry even managed to see this vision. I took it upon myself to question him as we sat next to each other on the train.

"There isn't any _Seer_ blood in your family, is there?" I asked, tilting my head.

"No," Harry said, offended. Really, I was not trying to make him mad. Well, Harry certainly is Sirius's godson, with his jumping to conclusions and having a slight temper.

"No," I said, thoughtfully, "no, I suppose it's not really prophecy you're doing, is it? I mean, you're not seeing the future, you're seeing the present . . . it's odd, isn't it? Useful, though . . ." I said, trailing off. We made it to the shop, even with a paranoid Mad-Eye.

I saw the store, Purge and Dowse Ltd., and went over to that dummy in the window display. "Right," I said, walking close to it. "Everybody ready?" I stepped closer to the dummy. "Wotcher . . . we're here to see Arthur Weasley." The dummy nodded and beckoned a jointed figure. I took Ginny and Molly by the elbows and we entered the hospital.

We walked to the information desk to find out what floor Arthur was on. He was on the first floor, so we went up to that. Soon, we came to his ward. "We'll wait outside Molly," I said, knowing that this was going to be a very personal moment. "Arthur won't want too many visitors at once . . . it ought to be just the family first." Mad-Eye even growled his approval. Harry tried to stay with us, but Molly pushed him inside the ward.

Mad-Eye and I just stood there, awkwardly. I nervously changed my hair until Mad-Eye yelled that it was giving him a headache. My hair went back to normal-well normal for me, meaning bubble-gum pink-and just tried to wait patiently. Finally the kids came out and Mad-Eye and I went in, closing the door behind us. We went over to Arthur and Molly and discussed the thing we came to discuss, what had exactly happened that night.

"I heard reports from my fellow Aurors, they searched the whole area but they couldn't find the snake anywhere, it just seems to have vanished after it attacked you, Arthur . . . but You-Know-Who can't have expected a snake to get in, can he?" I began, whispering.

Mad-Eye growled. "I reckon he sent it as a lookout 'cause he's not had any luck so far, has he? No, I reckon he's trying to get a clearer picture of what he's facing and if Arthur hadn't been there the beast would've had much more time to look around. So Potter says he saw it all happen?"

"Yes," said Molly nervously. "You know, Dumbledore seems almost to have been waiting for Harry to see something like this . . ."

"Yeah, well, there's something funny about the Potter kid, we all know that." said Mad-Eye, rather harshly.

Molly frowned. "Dumbledore seemed worried about Harry when I spoke to him this morning."

Mad-Eye narrowed his eyes. "'Course he's worried. The boy's seeing things from inside You-Know-Who's snake . . . Obviously, Potter doesn't realize what that means, but if You-Know-Who's possessing him, this could mean trouble."

I frowned, uncomfortable. They finished the conversation and we headed back to headquarters. I had to get going, so I left quickly. So many things on my mind, that it wasn't until I was back home that I realized I hadn't seen Remus all day.


	24. Merry Christmas

Tonks's POV

The snow was falling delicately, a perfect Christmas eve. I bundled up to face the cold. I paused as I was leaving to look at my apartment. It was decorated with tinsel and holly and mistletoe and anything else Christmasy. A tree was crammed into a corner and was decorated lavishly. I smiled, excited, and left.

Going to headquarters nearly gave me frostbite. I shivered as I entered it and hung up my coat, hat, scarf, and gloves. Immediately, I could smell Molly's cookies. I smiled and entered the kitchen.

"Wotcher, Merry Christmas," I said, sitting down to eat. Dinner was delicious. Everyone just hung out afterwards and then the kids went to bed.

We adults were sitting in the living room, listening to the radio. I had a good time. Laughing, I watch a contest between Remus and Sirius involving how many cookies they could stuff in their mouths. I feel Remus would have won, if he hadn't given up. Molly and Arthur headed to bed, since they were tired. Sirius eventually went up too, saying he was 'tired.' I didn't believe him, but I was still grateful.

Me and Remus danced around to the radio for a few more hours. We snogged a little too. I was exhausted, but I didn't want to leave Remus.

Remus's POV

This Christmas was wonderful. I had an amazing time with Nymphadora. She fell asleep as we were waltzing, so I carried her up to her bed and tucked her in. She looked so peaceful. Sometimes I worry if I'm doing the right thing by dating, but one look at Nymphadora convinces me I am.


	25. A Little Push

**A/N: Hi, I'm responding to one of my reviewers. So, you say that they weren't dating in the 5****th**** book, but we don't know that. I'm assuming they did date. Only assuming. Don't yell at me for trying to fill in the gaps. If you do have solid evidence, please share it with me. Also, in case you guys haven't noticed, this is based off the books. The movies don't do their relationship justice. And, in my mind, I feel that they should be dating because Remus is proper and won't see Tonks a lot if it wasn't official. And also it had to be more than something small, since Tonks gets depressed afterwards. So please make a point with something that was actually stated in the books, and didn't have to be inferred. **

**Oh, and I don't really have a spell check. Besides, nothing is perfect. Even books have errors in them. If you can read it find, don't complain.**

Tonks's POV

I sighed as I trudged through the snow. The kids had already left for Hogwarts. I was taking a walk. Normally I wouldn't do something like that, but I felt I needed to think. I was bundled up nicely and every so often I would perform a drying spell on me. Basically, I could walk without getting too uncomfortable. Which was nice, seeing how I was going to keep walking until I found a solution to my problem. I'm sort of stubborn.

My problem is Remus. I mean I love him, but the relationship is going so slow. I figured things would speed up a little, maybe after Christmas, but nothing. He's just too happy where he is now. I want to move it farther, but he won't let me. He obviously has no experience with relationships, which is kind of sweet, but frustrating at times. I've told Molly this, and she understands. She said that I'll have to just help him along. But it's taking forever! Suddenly, a plan forms in my mind. An evil, glorious, magnificent, romantic plan. I grin, and rush off back to my flat, excited to put it into action.

I prepare everything in my flat for the perfect date. I smiled as I decorated everything with candles. I draped pretty silks around my flat and cleaned up. I made a delicious dinner. Everything was all scented and nice. I put on a dress, a navy blue one with no back and no shoes.

I smiled as Remus came in. "Hey," I said hugging him.

"Is this all for us?" He asked, kissing me.

"Yeah!" I said, leading him over to the table. "Let's eat."

The dinner went smoothly. When I went to put music on, I knocked over a candle and the silk caught on fire. I didn't have my wand on me (where are you supposed to put your wand when you're in a dress?) so I backed away. Remus was quick, shouted "Aguamenti!"

Unfortunately, the water captured me as well as the flames. So, in a matter of seconds, I was soaked to the bone.

"You okay, Nymphadora?" Remus asked, concerned.

"D-d-don't c-c-call m-m-me t-t-that," I muttered, freezing.

"Here," Remus gave me his coat and led me up to my room.

"T-t-thanks," I said, shivering and entering the bathroom to dry off. Remus waited for me patiently.

I entered my room, wrapped in a towel. I sat next to him.

"Well, that was a failure" I said.

"No, it was fun," said Remus.

"I just thought it could be a nice date. And now everything is ruined," I said, frowning.

"Don't say that," Remus said, rubbing my back. "It was a good date. Now, we can continue with it by cle—"

I cut Remus off by kissing him. Remus hugged me tight and kissed back. We stayed up in my room for the rest of the night.


	26. Azkaban Escape

**A/N: Just want to say thanks to all my reviewers! **

Tonks's POV

I was writing up a stupid report on vampire cooperation, when the news came. Everyone in the Auror office jumped up, grabbed their wands, and reported for duty at the assigned post. There had been a mass breakout from Azkaban. I Apparated to my post, which was Hogsmeade. I doubted the Death Eaters would come to Hogsmeade, no, they'll probably go to their master. I cursed as I paced, wanting a better post. Kingsley's job was in Azkaban, to interrogate the dementors and see the damage. Of course he gets the actual work. I still held my wand steady and was prepared.

I stood, ready, as wanted posters started going up around Hogsmeade. I sighed as I thought on the Death Eaters. Antonin Dolohov, Bellatrix Lestrange, Rabastan Lestrange, Rodolphus Lestrange, Mulciber, Augustus Rookwood, Travers, and three other Death Eaters had escaped. My mind traveled to the Lestranges. I was, unfortunately, related to them. Even though my family was disowned, we still shared a very small portion of blood. I shuddered to think what would happen if word got out that I was related to some pretty bad Death Eaters. Not nearly as bad as the whole Barty Crouch incident, though.

Of course nothing happened at Hogsmeade, but I was reported to go back every day for a week. The reports were coming in, with nothing on them. The Death Eaters had escaped successfully. The dementors are to blame, but I doubt Fudge would say that. Finally, the Ministry decided to relieve me of my post, saying how they are going to go scouting with the elite Aurors, and I'll be best at home. I was annoyed, yet I headed to Headquarters.

Molly greeted me as I came in, "Tonks are you alright?"

"Yeah, not too scratched up," I said, going to the kitchen and sitting down.

"Where's Kingsley?" asked Arthur, worriedly.

"Scouting with the other elite Aurors," I said, rubbing my eyes. "Did Fudge publish anything? I've been on a post all week and got next to no news."

"Fudge did publish something," said Sirius, nonchalantely. Arthur dug out a copy of _The Daily Prophet_ from a week ago and began reading.

_"__**Mass Breakout from Azkaban Ministry fears Black is 'Rallying Point' for old Death Eaters**_

_The Ministry of Magic announced late last night that there has been a mass breakout from Azkaban._

_Speaking to reporters in his private office, Cornelius Fudge, Minister of Magic, confirmed that ten high-security prisoners escaped in the early hours of yesterday evening, and that he has already informed the Muggle Prime Minister of the dangerous nature of these individuals._

'_We find ourselves, most unfortunately, in the same position we were two and a half years ago when the murderer Sirius Black escaped,' said Fudge last night. 'Nor do we think the two breakouts are unrelated. An escape of this magnitude suggests outside help, and we must remember that Black, as the first person ever to break out of Azkaban, would be ideally place to help others follow in his footsteps. We think it likely that these individuals, which include Black's cousin, Bellatrix Lestrange, have rallied around Black as their leader. We are, however, doing all we can to round up the criminals and beg the magical community to remain alert and cautious. On no account should any of these individuals be approached."_

After reading it aloud, Arthur gave it to me. I snorted. "Wow, Fudge really has branched out. I haven't talked to Kingsley yet, but I know he thinks it is the dementors fault. It has to be."

Remus nodded. "That's what we think. We've been discussing a lot this past week. We're glad you're safe."

Remus knew I would rather be in the thick of the battle than at a safe haven, yet he still expects me to be careful. Our eyes met and a silent argument happened, debating whether or not, I should risk myself to help the Death Eaters or let the other Aurors do the work.

"Well, good luck, Tonks," said Arthur.

"Thanks Arthur. Bye Molly. See ya Sirius. Bye Remus."

"You're leaving already?" asked Molly.

"My post starts up again this afternoon, I got to go get ready." I said, standing.

The Aurors were on full alert for a month. Which means I didn't get any good night sleeps for a month. What made this frustrating is that the search was going nowhere. We couldn't find these Death Eaters. I visited my parents to make sure they were safe. Of course, my mom gave a huge lecture on being safe. My dad just hugged me and made me promise I wouldn't do anything rash. I promised that, and then I had to go. I did go on a couple of scouting missions with Kingsley and the other Aurors. We didn't find a trail of destruction, which is what they were expecting. Yet, no dark mark appeared in the sky, and the strange disappearances were still really strange. It was annoying, but there was nothing I could do but wait, wait for Fudge to see, wait for the Death Eaters to come out in the open, and wait for the war to begin.


	27. Valentine's Day

**A/N: There's a tiny bit of suggestive stuff in this chapter. Just to warn you. **

Tonks's POV

The Azkaban escape had kept me so busy I had no idea what day it was until I awoke to some roses by my bed. Frowning, I opened the card that was placed next to them. It read:

_Dear Nymphadora,_

_Just wanted to say good morning and Happy Valentine's Day. I bought you some roses to help brighten up your day. I'll see you after work._

_Love,_

_Remus_

I grimaced at my name, but smiled at the rest of the letter. It was so sweet of Remus! Panic shot through me as I realized I hadn't gotten Remus anything. I hurriedly got dressed in some Muggle clothes and ran out to buy some chocolates. They smelled so good, and I had to force myself not to eat them.

After I got that taken care of, I changed into my robes, and left for work. Work was hectic, as usual. Fudge was furious at how they managed to escape cleanly. Kingsley, Arthur, and I just walk around, biting our tongues. It annoys me so much though! I had to listen to Dawlish rant for 4 hours about how Sirius Black was mad.

I was getting really annoyed. All I wanted was to spend the day with Remus, but I was stuck here, with a bunch of people I don't like. In fact, I hate everyone at work, minus two people (them being Arthur and Kingsley, of course). I practically ran out the door after work.

I got changed back into Muggle clothing for my walk in the park with Remus. It was romantic. We held hands and walked away, talking about our days discreetly. Then we went to my flat and exchanged gifts. Remus loved the chocolates. He got me a gold charm necklace with a heart locket on it. Smiling, I thanked him with a big kiss. Since we had nowhere to be tonight, we had fun in my flat, playing games and snogging and all that.


	28. Dumbledore gone

Tonks's POV

I was at work, when Fudge came storming in.

"We have it! We have proof! Dawlish, Shaklebolt, come with me!" Me and Kingsley locked eyes for a brief second. I didn't have to get the message to know what to do. The news was traveling around as they left. Fudge found out about the secret society, and was going to arrest Dumbledore.

Of course, right after work I told the others at headquarters. We were all worried about the students, Fudge seemed really happy to arrest Dumbledore.

Finally, Kingsley came into headquarters. He said how Harry and a girl called Marietta Edgecombe, who betrayed all of them, were at the office. Kingsley had to erase Marrietta's memory, and Dumbledore took the blame. Before Dumbledore could be arrested, he left. Where to, we have no idea.

"Well, I'm glad the children are safe," said Molly, her face white.

"Still, with Dumbledore gone . . ." started Sirius, scowling.

". . . We still have Kingsley, who Fudge trusts," said Remus.

I frowned. Dumbledore was gone, which means Fudge will be worse than ever. "Now what's going to happen?"

We all looked at each other, not really sure.


	29. Battle at the Department of Mysteries

Tonks's POV

It was a beautiful evening. This spring had gone by so fast, and it was wonderful. Sirius had invited Remus, Kingsley, Mad-Eye, and me over to hang out with him. He gets lonely a lot, but school was almost over, so the kids would be back soon.

Remus and me entered headquarters and went straight to the kitchen. Everyone else was there, except for Sirius. We waited for 5 minutes, until Sirius entered.

"Sorry, Buckbeak was injured," said Sirius.

"Oh, how?" I asked, concerned.

Sirius shrugged. "Don't worry, Buckbeak's fine now."

The conversation steered away from hippogriffs, and towards other things. We were trading jokes when Sirius mentioned how Severus had contacted him earlier.

"Harry said You-Know-Who had Sirius captured in the Department of Mysteries," Sirius said. "Severus said he'll contact us if they leave Hogwarts to go the ministry."

Remus frowned. "Voldemort must have planted that. Where is Harry now?"

"With Umbridge," said Sirius, "Harry wouldn't go—" began Sirius, but I cut him off.

"Of course he would! Let's just hope they keep the kids at Hogwarts. Besides, how will they even get to the Ministry?"

"Still, let's be prepared," said Remus. We all nodded.

The wait felt so long. We didn't say anything, just glanced at the clock once in a while. What I didn't understand was why Harry didn't check headquarters. But he probably couldn't, due to security.

Then, Severus contacted us.

_Potter hasn't returned. I fear he, Granger, the two Weasleys, Longbottom, and Lovegood have gone to the Ministry. Dumbledore will be arriving to headwuarters shortly. I shall search the forest for them. I recommend Black stays here when Dumbledore gets here._

We all stood up, including Sirius.

"I am not about to just abandon my godson!" He said, "Kreacher will tell Dumbledore."

We weren't going to waste time arguing with him, so we just nodded and Apparated to the Ministry. Kingsley led the way to the Department of Mysteries. We entered, and found the correct door. We sprinted through, wands ready.

I quickly shot a stunning spell at Lucius Malfoy. We had the element of surprise, which was nice. The battle kicked up, as we dueled and fought with the Death Eaters. I was halfway down the steps, when Bellatrix started fighting me. It was a tough duel, but my hatred helped my reflexes. Bellatrix, however, had had years of practice. She was just too quick for me, as one of her spells hit me. There was a sharp pain, and I blacked out.

Remus's POV

I dueled with various Death Eaters, as the fighter in me was awakened. I had seen Mad-Eye fall from across the room, but couldn't help out due to a large Death Eater in my way. And then I had seen Nymphadora fall. All I could do was pray that she wasn't dead. Sirius and Bellatrix were dueling. Lucius Malfoy was about to shoot a spell at Harry, when I jumped in between them and blocked it.

"Harry, round up the others and GO!"

Luckily, Dumbledore arrived almost immediately. He quickly rounded up all the Death Eaters. The only duelers left were Sirius and Bellatrix. I watched wearily, wanting Sirius to be more careful.

Sirius was laughing, "Come on, you can do better than that!" He wasn't done laughing when the spell hit him in the chest. And somehow, somewhere I knew it was fatal.

Everything seemed to stand still. Sirius slowly fell through the veil, gone for good. Harry's scream of "SIRIUS! SIRIUS!" brought me back to reality.

Harry couldn't go through the veil, he'll disappear. I grabbed him around the chest to stop him.

"There's nothing you can do, Harry—"

"Get him, save him, he's only just gone through!"

"It's too late, Harry—"

"We can still reach him—"

"There's nothing you can do, Harry . . . nothing . . . He's gone." I tried to keep it together, Harry still needed me.

"He hasn't gone! SIRIUS! SIRIUS!" Harry surged forwards, and it took all of my strength to contain him.

I finally broke. "He can't come back, Harry. He can't come back, because he's d—"

"HE—IS—NOT—DEAD! SIRIUS!"

I dragged Harry away from the veil. I could see Mad-Eye had crawled over to Nymphadora and was trying to revive her. The battle was basically over. Kingsley dueled with Bellatrix.

Harry stopped struggling, but I still kept a precautionary grip on his arm. Neville had managed his way over to Harry.

"Harry? Harry . . . I'b really sorry . . . was dat man—was Sirius Black a –a friend of yours?"

Harry nodded.

"Here," I said, fixing Neville's curse with a simple, "Finite." I took a deep breath. "Let's—let's find the others. Where are they all, Neville?" I turned away from the veil, trying to focus on the present.

"Dey're all back dere. A brain addacked Ron bud I dink he'ss all righd—and Herbione's unconscious, bud we could feel a bulse—"

He was cut off by Kingsley falling from Bellatrix's hand. Dumbledore shot a spell at her, but she deflected it. Harry ran after her.

"Harry—no!" I yelled, but he was already nearly out of the room. I could hear him yell. "SHE KILLED SIRIUS! SHE KILLED HIM—I'LL KILL HER!"

Dumbledore finished up tying the remaining Death Eaters, and went after Harry. The standing Order members helped heal what we could. St Mungos took Nymphadora away, assuring us that it wasn't too bad. Mad-Eye and Kingsley were all fine once they were patched up.

Even though I wasn't physically hurt, I felt like someone ripped out a piece of my heart. My best friend was gone, forever. First James and now Sirius, I walked away from the battle, depressed.


	30. Recovery

Tonks's POV

Every part of me ached. My eyelids felt heavy as I tried to open them. When I did, the bright light nearly blinded me. Everything was blurry for a couple of seconds. As the room spun into focus, I realized where I was. St. Mungos. I must have been taken there after the battle. The battle . . .

With a jolt, I realized that I wasn't alone. Remus was there, sitting by my bed. He looked like he hadn't slept for days. He obviously hadn't shaved or taken a shadow, and the shadows under his eyes were bigger than ever. For the first time, I really noticed his gray hair, and how much stress he's always in.

"Remus . . ." I said, getting some more strength. He started; he probably thought I was still asleep.

"Nymphadora, you're awake. Good."

"Did we win? The battle, did we win?" The question had been haunting me ever since I woke up a minute ago.

"Yes, we won." said Remus. "Dumbledore arrived and captured up all the Death Eaters, except for Bellatrix Lestrange. Voldemort arrived shortly after Dumbledore. They dueled, and He-Voldemort-escaped with Bellatrix. Not after the ministry saw them."

"Oh, that's good." I said. "Now they know He's back." I relaxed, and then froze again. "Were there any other causalities?"

"A couple of the kids were hurt, but nothing serious. They're much better now. Mad-Eye and Kingsley both fell, but they're fine. And you, of course."

"Oh. Any deaths?" I asked, tense.

"Just one. On our side." Remus said, but didn't continue. I had a sinking feeling in my gut. My gut knew, but I needed to hear it to confirm. To make it real. Remus got up. "Sirius," he said as he left. Before the door swung shut, I thought I could hear a sob.

I was shocked, and depressed. My cousin, the fighter was dead. I bit my lip to stop the oncoming tears. I had to be strong. This was war, and I knew what I was signing up for. I thought I did at least. This pain was so great though. I took a deep breath and vowed to avenge Sirius's death.

The next day, Mad-Eye visited me. He seemed really relieved. He refused to say who Sirius's murderer was, but I kept on insisting. Finally, he gave in. It was Bellatrix.


	31. Farewell

**A/N: Tonks learned the names of the Dursleys from Remus or Sirius. So if you are obsessed about every little detail, I'm just letting you know.**

Tonks's POV

I sighed as I went to meet Remus and Mad-Eye. We were meeting at Kings' Cross. These past few days have been hectic. I was ready for summer to begin. Not that it won't end. He was back, and the ministry has been through a ton of stuff. We are trying to fire Fudge (no complaints there) and the Aurors are working so hard to catch any Death Eaters or Him.

This work is good for me. It helps me forget about that battle. Well, most of the time it helps. The Aurors seem to know that Kingsley and I were there, so I was getting badgered with questions. I just said that Bellatrix knocked me out early (which is true), and I don't remember much.

I dressed in Muggle clothing, with my hair a bright bubblegum pink. Kingsley convinced me that if I stay with my natural routine, I'll get better. I haven't been feeling too swell lately. So, here I was, at Kings' Cross, pretending to be okay. I stood with Remus and Mad-Eye, as I watched Arthur and Molly fuss over Fred and George. After the initial rage that Molly felt when she heard that they dropped out, she seemed like she tolerated their joke shop business now. Then, Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny came out of the brick wall.

Molly ran forward. "Ron, Ginny! Oh, and Harry dear—how are you?"

"Fine," Harry said, although I knew he was lying.

Ron went to talk to his brothers.

"What are _they_ supposed to be?" he asked, pointing at their jackets.

"Finest dragon skin, little bro. Business is booming and we thought we'd treat ourselves." said either Fred or George.

Remus went to talk to Harry. "Hello, Harry."

"Hi, I didn't expect . . . what are you all doing here?"

"Well, we thought we might have a little chat with your aunt and uncle before letting them take you home."

"I dunno if that's a good idea."

Mad-Eye growled, "Oh I think it is. That'll be them, will it Potter?" He pointed to a group of people that must be the Dursleys.

"Ah, Harry!" exclaimed Arthur. "Well—shall we do it, then?"

"Yeah, I reckon so, Arthur," said Mad-Eye.

We walked over to the Dursleys. Arthur started talking. "Good afternoon. You might remember me, my name's Arthur Weasley."

Molly joined in. "We thought we'd just have a few words with you about Harry." The Dursleys reactions were so funny. Vernon was very pink. Petunia was frightened. And Dudley was not right in the head.

Mad-Eye nodded. "Yeah. About how he's treated when he's at your place."

Stupid Vernon retorted with, "I am not aware that it is any of your business what goes on in my house—"

"I expect what you're not aware of would fill several books, Dursley."

We were getting nowhere, so I cut in. Apparently, Petunia seemed so horrified by my pink hair, she closed her eyes. "Anyway, that's not the point. The point is, if we find out you've been horrible to Harry—"

"—and make no mistake, we'll hear about it," added Remus.

Arthur nodded. "Yes, even if you won't let Harry use the fellytone—"

"_Telephone_," whispered Hermione.

Mad-Eye grimaced. "Yeah, if we get any hint that Potter's been mistreated in any way, you'll have us to answer to."

Vernon was being really stupid now. "Are you threatening me, sir?"

"Yes, I am."

"And do I look like the kind of man who can be intimidated?"

"Well . . ." Mad-Eye revealed his messed up eye, which had been hidden behind a bowler hat the whole time. "Yes, I'd have to say you do, Dursley." Mad-Eye turned to Harry. "So, Potter . . . give us a shout if you need us. If we don't hear from you for three days in a row, we'll send someone along . . ." which extracted a whimper from Petunia. "'Bye then, Potter."

Remus nodded. "Take care, Harry. Keep in touch."

Molly hugged Harry. "Harry, we'll have you away from there as soon as we can."

"We'll see you soon, mate," said Ron.

Hermione nodded, "Really soon, Harry. We promise."

Harry left, and then Hermione had to leave. Remus, Mad-Eye, and I said goodbye to the Weasleys and left.


	32. Breakup

Remus's POV

I frowned and stared up at the sky. It was dark and cloudy; I could hear thunder rumbling in the distance. The wind was chilling to the bone, and I wrapped my coat around me tighter. I turned as I hear footsteps approaching.

Nymphadora was frowning. Even though she wasn't bundled up as usual, she didn't look cold. Her eyes had shadows underneath them, and her hair was thick and dirty blonde. Her eyes were gray, a dark gray so chilling, that it reminded the person that she was a qualified Auror.

My heart was breaking, but I had to do this. The pain I had felt when I lost Sirius was too much. It was as bad as James's death. They were my first friends and my only friends really. Yet they were gone. And now all I have are Harry and Nymphadora. Harry will be safe at school, under Dumbledore's watchful and cautious eye. But Nymphadora was a risk-taker and would run out straight in battle. She could get hurt. If she had died during the battle . . . I quickly stopped thinking about that. I cared too much for Nymphadora. If I had to watch her die, like I watched Sirius, I would die. I can't lose anyone else.

"I got your owl," she said, "What's up?"

"I needed to talk to you. In private."

"Okay. What about?"

"Us."

Nymphadora frowned. "Is there something wrong?"

"Yes, there is. We had fun this year, but know it's time to stop."

"Wait, what?" Nymphadora took a step closer. "I know it was fun, but wasn't it important to you?"

"Not really," I lied. I almost gave up when I saw Nymphadora's look of pain on her face. Then, her face returned to an icy glare.

"Okay, then. I see. After all, we need to be _mature_ about it." She shot back, as it started to rain

"Yes, which is why we shouldn't speak to each other anymore." I said quickly, before I could stop myself. Nymphadora got really mad. I felt really bad, but if I still see her during meetings, I'll want to keep seeing her.

"What?! Okay, that is stupid! We can still hang out. But of course, you're too awkward to make that work!"

"It won't work anyway! I don't even know how we got us to work!" I lowered my voice. "We're just too different."

Nymphadora opened her mouth and then closed it. She took a deep breath. "Fine, since we obviously can't be around each other, this must be for the better." She turned to leave. The rain was pouring now. "Oh and I hope you're happy now, Remus." She walked away and disappeared into the darkness. As the rain poured around me, it blocked out everything, including the sound of my breaking heart.


	33. Tea and Sympathy

**A/N: So I had this nice plan of my next chapters and what to include from the book when, of course, it got deleted. I had to redo it and then I had tons of schoolwork and tests. So, sorry for the wait. Also, I put in the first part of this chapter due to the fact that some people raise complaints against Tonks in the fact that she was depressed just over a break-up. So, I thought to give you my opinion on all the factors that made Tonks depressed.**

Tonks's POV

I didn't want to get out of bed this morning, or any morning. I had come to work, but then I had stopped. I also avoided Order meetings. My typical day included sleeping until I'm hungry, and eating until I'm tired.

Mad-Eye came to check on me one day. I heard a knock at my door.

"Go away," I muttered.

"Tonks, let me in." I heard Mad-Eye growl.

"It's unlocked," I said, putting a pillow over my head. I heard Mad-Eye come in and sit down at a nearby chair.

"Well, what's wrong?" I uncovered my face and sat up. Mad-Eye snorted. "Tonks, you look like death warmed over."

I frowned, but Mad-Eye continued. "So, I see your hair seems to match someone's." I glanced in the mirror, and flinched. I had huge shadows under my eyes, and my hair looked like a rat's nest. It was mousy brown, my natural color. In fact, my face was completely natural, for a change. I realized, with a pang, that my hair color was similar to Re—his.

"It's my natural color." I said, grabbing a brush.

"I am upset with you, Tonks. All of this over some guy?" said Mad-Eye, snorting.

I glared at Mad-Eye. "For your information, all of this wasn't over some guy. It was the fact that my life fell apart in a week. My cousin _died. _I was battling the urchin who did it. If I had just stopped her before she hit me, I could have prevented it! Then, my one friend who I'd thought would be there for me decided to leave. He chose precisely the wrong moment to rip out my heart, which was already hanging loose. At work, things are awful. People keep bothering me, but the one thing they don't do is apologize. Apologize for everything that they said this year. Some people still think that Sirius is guilty! Well, I've had it!"

I resumed brushing out my hair. Mad-Eye frowned, thinking. "Talk to Molly, she'll help." He got up to go, and then paused. "Oh, and he's going to work undercover with the werewolves, so you don't have to worry about seeing him in meetings." Mad-Eye left. I glanced at the clock. It was really late, but I felt like I had to talk to Molly. She'll know what to do. I put some stuff on to erase the shadows under my eyes, and got dressed. Grabbing my wand, I hurriedly went to the Burrow.

Molly was just cleaning up as I came in. "Oh, Tonks, dear. I'm glad to see you. What can I do for you?"

I sat down. "I just need someone to talk to." Molly made me a large mug of tea and sat down across from me.

We talked into the wee hours of the morning. Molly gave me some good advice, and said that I should start up my normal routine again. I did feel a little bit better. I was worried that I was making Molly stay up late, but she said that she was waiting for Arthur. We were discussing the Ministry, and how annoying it was, when company arrived.

Molly went over to the door. "Who's there? Declare yourself!"

"It is I, Dumbledore, bringing Harry."

Molly opened the door to let Dumbledore in. "Harry, dear! Gracious, Albus, you gave me a fright, you said not to expect you before morning!"

"We were lucky. Slughorn proved much more persuadable than I had expected. Harry's doing, of course. Ah, hello, Nymphadora!"

Well, I hadn't expected Dumbledore not to notice me. I felt bad for skipping Order meetings.

"Hello, Professor. Wotcher Harry."

"Hi, Tonks."

I decided it was time to go. "I'd better be off. Thanks for the tea and sympathy, Molly."

"Please don't leave on my account. I cannot stay, I have urgent matters to discuss with Rufus Scrimgeour." Dumbledore said.

I didn't meet his eyes, as I replied, "No, no, I need to get going. 'Night—"

"Dear, why not come to dinner at the weekend, Remus and Mad-Eye are coming—"

"No, really, Molly . . . thanks anyway . . . Good night, everyone." I left and went to go back home.


	34. Severus the Wicked

**A/N: Merry Christmas to all of those who celebrate it, and Happy Hanukah, (even though it's over, I think). Have an awesome holiday! I'll be back around New Year, to continue with Tonks's story. **

Tonks's POV

It gets easier, I have figured out. People at work leave me alone and now he is working undercover with the werewolves. It would be much easier, if I wasn't still crazy about him. I miss him a lot, and I can't help but get any news I can about him. Molly says that it's going to drive me mad, and that I should stop, but I can't. Call me obsessive or crazy, but I still care about him a lot and wish we were back together.

Scrimgeour, now Minister of Magic, posted me at my old spot in Hogsmeade. I hadn't been there since the mass breakout from Azkaban last year. It was a chilly night, and the train was coming in with students ready for Hogwarts. I glanced up at the old castle. I miss Hogwarts, but I'm glad to be free from school. I like working in the world, it gives me a sense of adventure and freedom. I was with Dawlish, Savage, and Proudfoot. I mostly ignored them, since my patience with Dawlish was at an all time low, and Savage and Proudfoot were smart enough to give me some space.

Still, their company wasn't too comforting. It was annoying, actually, hearing them talk all about security and the Ministry and the rise of You-Know-Who. They didn't bother to ask me anything, though. I mean, it's not like I was in the Order and knew He was back before they did. I scanned the groups of students, until I saw Ron and Hermione. Harry wasn't with them, which was odd. Thinking something was fishy and being sick of the other Aurors propelled me to go check out the train.

I noticed a compartment with the curtains drawn. I knew Harry had his invisibility cloak (I remembered Sirius and Remus talking about It.) (I felt a pang from that memory), so I found the cloak, and uncovered Harry.

"Wotcher, Harry," I said, and then unfroze him. His face was bloody and bruised, and he looked uncomfortable. His nose was probably broken. "We'd better get out of here, quickly. Come on, we'll jump." The train was beginning to move, and we jumped onto the platform. I handed his cloak back.

"Who did it?" I asked.

"Draco Malfoy. Thanks for . . . well . . ."

"No problem. I can fix your nose if you stand still." Harry closed him eyes nervously. "Episkey." His nose went back to normal.

"Thanks a lot!"

"You'd better put that cloak back on, and we can walk up to the school." Harry put the cloak on and we walked over to the school. I didn't mean to intimidate him with my mood, but he just reminded me too much of Sirius and Remus. Besides, I was still in a nasty mood over the other Aurors. I sent a patronus to Hagrid, to alert him to come to the gates to let Harry in. My patronus had changed to a werewolf, another reminder of him.

"Was that a Patronus?"

"Yes, I'm sending word to the castle that I've got you or they'll worry. Come one, we'd better not dawdle."

"How did you find me?"

"I noticed that you hadn't left the train and I knew you had that cloak. I thought you might be hiding for some reason. When I saw the blinds were drawn down on that compartment I thought I'd check."

"But what are you doing here, anyway?"

"I'm stationed in Hogsmeade now, to give the school extra protection."

"Is it just you who's stationed up here, or –?"

"No, Proudfoot, Savage, and Dawlish are here too."

"Dawlish, that Auror Dumbledore attacked last year?"

"That's right."

We walked the rest of the way in silence. We came up to the gates, freezing. Where was Hagrid? Harry tried to open the gates with an "Alohomora."

"That won't work on these. Dumbledore bewitched them himself."

"I could climb a wall."

"No, you couldn't. Anti-intruder jinxes on all of them. Security's been tightened a hundredfold this summer."

"Well then. I supposed I'll just have to sleep out here and wait for morning."

"Someone's coming for you. Look." I pointed to where a lantern was bobbing in the distance. Either it was really far away, or it wasn't Hagrid.

It wasn't Hagrid, it was Severus.

"Well, well, well. Nice of you to turn up, Potter, although you have evidently decided that the wearing of school robes would detract from your appearance."

"I couldn't change, I didn't have my—"

"There is no need to wait, Nymphadora, Potter is quite—ah—safe in my hands."

I glared at Severus and frowned. "I meant Hagrid to get the message."

"Hagrid was late for the start-of-term feast, just like Potter here, so I took it instead. And incidentally, I was interested to see your new Patronus."

How he knew beforehand was a mystery, but then again, Severus was a sneaky little bat. He let Harry in and shut the gates (rather hard and loud) in my face, before finishing. "I think you were better off with the old one. The new one looks weak."

I was appalled at Severus. He left before I could hex him or shout at him. It was no secret that Severus thought I was childish and he smirked whenever he was around me. He thinks I'm a stupid little girl, crying over a broken heart. I just stood there, in the cold, fuming at Severus. The nerve! At some point I realized that catching hypothermia wouldn't do any good, so I headed back, plotting my revenge.


	35. Mundungus the Theif

**A/N: Happy New Year to you all! Hope 2013 is a good year for everyone!**

Tonks's POV

The old me was back for about a day. Only a day. I quickly went back to my new self, as I realized that plotting revenge on Severus was something that Sirius and Remus (mostly Sirius), would have done. I huddled up in my flat, trying to block out all the memories of those two that were flooding in. I was content to just tolerate Severus at the moment. It helped that I could talk to Molly. Some nights all I did was talk, and other nights I wasn't able to utter a word.

October was slowly passing, when I was walking through Hogsmeade. Molly said that the fresh air and all the stores would be good for me. I was hesitant, but at least it gave me something to do. It was a chilly day in Hogsmeade, but I barely felt the cold.

I noticed Harry, Ron, and Hermione outside of the Three Broomsticks. Harry seemed outraged at something, more specifically, someone. I walked closer and saw Mundungus. Harry had pinned Mundungus up against the wall. I walked over to them and saw Mundungus hit Harry, and Disapparated. Harry swore and screamed "COME BACK, YOU THIEVING—!"

"There's no point, Harry," I said, cutting in. I knew Mundungus was as good as gone. "Mundungus will probably be in London by now. There's no point yelling."

"He's nicked Sirius's stuff! Nicked it!" Harry exclaimed. I felt anger rising inside of me, but I contained it for the moment.

"Yes, but still. You should get out of the cold." I said, hiding all the emotions inside of me. I was getting worried about them, seeing how it was freezing. I watched them enter the Three Broomsticks. I let out an irritated noise and went to headquarters.

Mad-Eye was there, and he listened as I told him about Mundungus. Mad-Eye said that he'll talk to Mundungus next time he comes around. I simply replied with a good and left.

Everyone seems to be purposely infuriating me these days. Molly says that it's all in my head, and once I straighten out, I'll see. I can see how Molly is worried that I'll stay like this forever. I wonder that too, if I'll ever go back to my old self.


	36. Talk of Werewolves and Love

**A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers! You guys are awesome!**

Remus's POV

Working with the werewolves was difficult. They didn't trust me, seeing as I lived among wizards. Working helped get my mind off of . . . certain things. I had thought once I banished her from my life, things would get easy. But they didn't. I had felt miserable, even more than I had thought was possible. My heart was aching, and at my weakest times I wished I hadn't sent her off. But then, I would remind myself that it would be worse if I lost her. And I was with the werewolves; I had to be alert at all times.

Molly had invited me to the Burrow for Christmas, even though she supported Nymphadora in our fight. She has been very cold to me, and I realize that, in her eyes, I deserve it. Yet Nymphadora is well from what I here, so the split couldn't have been too bad, could it?

It was Christmas Eve, and all of use, me, the other guests, and the Weasleys, were in the living room, listening to the radio. I sat near the comforting fire, and listened to the radio. Unfortunately, the number was "A Cauldron Full of Hot, Strong Love," by Celestine Warbeck. I felt uneasy, as I listened to the music. It was the kind of music that Nymphadora liked. I stared into the fire as the guilt flooded in me again. The conversation floated around me, as I revisited old memories. A rainy date, kissing in the snow, joking with Sirius, and just being happy.

I was distracted by Arthur and Harry's conversation. They were talking about Severus and Draco Malfoy. I couldn't help but listen, as it erased her from my mind. I smiled as Harry seemed set on hating Severus. Well, with a father like James and a godfather like Sirius, it wasn't hard to find out why. I talked to him about trusting Severus and how I didn't like nor dislike Severus. After the discussion of Severus, we talked about the werewolves. Then I had admitted to Harry that it was the werewolf, Fenrir Greyback, who bit me.

Harry brought up an interesting topic, the Half-Blood Prince. I had no idea what who it was, but Harry seemed very interested in it.

Everyone headed upstairs to get some sleep. I always found Christmas exciting when I was a little boy. Now, I hardly expect presents. With Sirius and Nymphadora gone, and Molly mad at me, I was surprised at seeing some presents Christmas morning. Molly had given me a brown sweater. It was very warm, and I wore it to breakfast. My other gifts were nice, an assortment of clothes, books, and chocolate.

Everyone had sweaters at breakfast, except Fleur (which wasn't surprising). We were all chatting cheerfully, and eating breakfast, when Fleur made a comment to Ron.

Fleur snuck her nose in the air, "You are as bad as zat Tonks. She is always knocking—"

Molly was quick to defend Nymphadora. "I invited _dear _Tonks to come along today. But she wouldn't come. Have you spoken to her lately, Remus?"

I felt annoyed that Molly brought this up, especially in front of everyone. She just wouldn't stop, would she? "No, I haven't been in contact with anybody very much. But Tonks has got her own family to go to, hasn't she." I used her casual last name. I should be casual. She is just another member of the Order. Besides, the fun of calling her Nymphadora has worn out. I still think of her as a Nymphadora, but that name is just too painful. Too full of emotion. Call me crazy, but that's what I think.

"Hmmm. Maybe. I got the impression she was planning to spend Christmas alone, actually." At that, Molly glared at me. She said how I was too hard on her. How could I explain that I did it to protect her, not to hurt her?

My thoughts were broken by another comment, this time a question from Harry.

"Tonks's Patronus has changed its form. Snape said so anyway. I didn't know that could happen. Why would your Patronus change?"

I thought about how to answer this. I knew why her Patronus had changed, from what Molly said; she still loves me, even though I thought I had lied successfully (Why wouldn't she move on already?!). I was not about to tell this to Harry, so I carefully crafted a truthful, general answer. "Sometime . . . a great shock . . . an emotional upheaval."

"It looked big, and it had four legs. Hey . . . it couldn't be—?" Before Harry had time to put together the pieces, the Minister of Magic arrived. With Percy, who had disgraced himself last year by supporting the Ministry.

The Minister went on a walk with Harry, and we were stuck with Percy. Molly was fussing over him, but his siblings and father were regarding him with a suspicious air to them. Fred, George, and Ginny finally decided to throw food at Percy, and he left with a tantrum.

I know I wouldn't have to be with the werewolves forever, and I will have to return to meetings and do work with other members. The members of the Order all know what happened between me and Nymphadora by now. I just wonder how if it's so hard to forget when we're apart, what's it going to be like when we're together.


	37. News

**A/N: How was your holiday? Mine was pretty good.**

Tonks's POV

I was at word, minding my own business, when I overhead Proudfoot and Savage talking. They were discussing trouble with the werewolves. I froze. Remus was with the werewolves. If the werewolves were being violent, Remus might get hurt or worse. I know Remus is a strong fighter, but he also tends to try to work it out before jumping right in. His hesitation might be bad. I thought of who I could ask for information. No one in the Order really knew anything else about the werewolves . . . except for Dumbledore.

At Hogsmeade, my post, I decided now would be the best time to ask Dumbledore. The others didn't need me, Hogsmeade was empty. I hurried into to Hogwarts, and went to Dumbledore's office (I remembered where it was from my time at Hogwarts. I always had to talk to the Headmaster because I was "misbehaving." In reality I was just having some fun).

Dumbledore had given his password to the Order members, so I went right up there. I was surprised to find it empty. A memory nagged in the back of my head, and I realized that Dumbledore had said that he was busy and was leaving Hogwarts. I was probably too gloomy at the meeting to register it.

I left the office and was walking along the 7th floor when I heard a noise. And then a scream from no one yelling "OUCH!"

Harry suddenly appeared, clutching his toe.

"Harry?" I asked, surprised. I startled him and he fell over. He got up.

"What're you doing here?" He asked. I realized that this might be awkward for him, since this is the second time I saw him lying on the floor.

"I came to see Dumbledore," I said.

"His office isn't here," Harry began, "it's round the other side of the castle, behind the gargoyle—"

"I know. He's not there. Apparently he's gone away again." I felt irritated that he had to go now. I really had to see if Remus was okay.

"Has he? Hey—you know where he goes, I suppose?" Harry asked, curious. Maybe if I was the old self, I would be just as curious.

"No," I said.

"What did you want to see him about?" asked Harry.

"Nothing in particular." I said, involuntarily picking at my sleeve. I had picked up that trait now, especially when I was trying to avoid a question. "I just thought he might know what's going on . . . I've heard rumors . . . people getting hurt . . ."

"Yeah, I know, it's all been in the papers. That little kid trying to kill his—"

"The _Prophet's _often behind the time." I said, not really paying attention. An idea came to me. "You haven't had any letters from anyone in the Order recently?"

"No one from the Order writes to me anymore, not since Sirius—"

Hearing his name being spoken jolted me, and I fought back the tears (not very successfully) that were coming. Harry muttered something, but I didn't catch that. "What? Well . . . I'll see you around, Harry . . ."

I turned around and left, very upset. I went into a vacant bathroom to just clean up to make it look like I wasn't crying. I took a deep breath and went back to Hogsmeade.


	38. A Battle, a Death, and a Confession

Tonks's POV

He's back. Not You-Know-Who, he was back ages ago, but Remus. We have agreed to be polite to each other, and still be acquaintances (I wonder if this is killing him like it's killing me).

Tonight, my Order work is patrolling the castle with Remus and Bill. We joined Minerva and quietly did our job. It was peaceful work. That is, until Ron, Ginny, and Neville came bursting towards us.

"Malfoy got a bunch of Death Eaters in!" said Ron quickly. We found them at the Astronomy Tower in minutes. Then we started fighting and dueling. They started running and we followed them. I recognized a Death Eater, Gibbon, run up to the Tower.

Gibbon returned, and was hit by a killing curse that thankfully just missed Remus. We were fighting to our best, but we weren't doing so well. The Death Eaters were powerful and they wouldn't give up. Neville ran to go up the stairs, but there must have been a shield there, because he bounced off of it and hit the ground, hard. Greyback, meanwhile, was attacking Bill. I was dueling Rowle, and I was determined to win. A Death Eater shot a hex that caused half the ceiling to fall in. The barrier on the stairs was broken, so we ran through. I saw Severus and the Malfoy boy emerge, but I didn't attack them (I had thought they were on our side, but later, I wish I had attacked them).

The fighting resumed. Rowle kept casting curse after curse, but I was too quick for him. I heard Severus shout something in the distance. The Death Eaters retreated. Somehow, we had won.

We brought Neville and Bill to the hospital wing. We waited there, not sure what to do now. We had to know the whole story. Ron, Ginny, Neville, Hermione, and Luna were there also. Ginny left to go find Harry.

Remus and I sat down on the chairs next to Bill's bed as everyone gathered around him. Neville was sleeping in the bed closest the door, and the nurse (Madame Pomfrey, I think) said he'll be fine. Now it was Bill we were worried about.

Ginny eventually arrived with Harry. Hermione ran over to hug him. Remus got up too, relieved to see Harry.

"Are you all right, Harry?" He asked.

"I'm fine . . . How's Bill?" Harry asked. No one answered him, and he went to see Bill properly. "Can't you fix them with a charm or something?"

"No charm will work on these. I've tried everything I know, but there is no cure for werewolf bites." said Madame Pomfrey.

Ron looked queasy. "But he wasn't bitten at the full moon. Greyback hadn't transformed, so surely Bill won't be a—a real—?" He looked at Remus.

"No, I don't think that Bill will be a true werewolf, but that does not mean that there won't be some contamination. Those are cursed wounds. They are unlikely ever to heal fully, and—and Bill have some wolfish characteristics from now on," said Remus.

"Dumbledore might know something that'd work, though, where is he?" Ron said, voicing the question that we were all thinking. Where was Dumbledore? Now that I thought about it, I hadn't seen him at all. "Bill fought those maniacs on Dumbledore's orders, Dumbledore owes him, he can't leave him in this state—"

Ginny cut in, "Ron—Dumbledore's dead."

I was in shock. Complete, utter shock. I was vaguely aware of Remus yelling "No!" and sitting down next to me.

I recovered enough to whisper, "How did he die? How did it happen?"

Harry took a deep breath, "Snape killed him. I was there, I saw it. We arrived back at the Astronomy Tower because that's where the Mark was. . . Dumbledore was ill, he was weak, but I think he realized it was a trap when we heard footsteps running up the stairs. He immobilized me, I couldn't do anything, I was under the Invisibility Cloak—and then Malfor came through the door and disarmed him—more Death Eaters arrived—and then Snape—and Snape did it. The _Avada Kedavra_." Harry stopped, and Madame Pomfrey started crying, but was shushed by Ginny.

Then, a beautiful phoenix song began. It was sweet, sad, and wonderful. We listened to it in silence until Minerva entered. "Molly and Arthur are on their way. Harry, what happened? According to Hagrid you were with Professor Dumbledore when he—when it happened. He says Professor Snape was involved in some—"

"Snape killed Dumbledore," Harry said blankly.

Minerva looked like she was going to faint. She sat down, "Snape. We all wondered . . . but he trusted . . . always . . . _Snape _. . . I can't believe it . . ."

"Snape was a highly accomplished Occlumens. We always knew that," said Remus harshly.

My voice still wouldn't go to above a whisper. "But Dumbledore swore he was on our side! I always thought Dumbledore must know something about Snape that we didn't . . ."

Minerva muttered, "He always hinted that he had an ironclad reason for trusting Snape. I mean . . . with Snape's history . . . of course people were bound to wonder . . . But Dumbledore told me explicitly that Snape's repentance was absolutely genuine . . . Wouldn't hear a word against him!"

"I'd love to know what Snape told him to convince him," I said.

"I know," Harry said, "Snape passed Voldemort the information that made Voldemort hunt down my mum and dad. Then Snape told Dumbledore he hadn't realized what he was doing, he was really sorry he'd done it, sorry that they were dead."

Remus was incredulous. "And Dumbledore believe that? Dumbledore believed Snape was sorry James was dead? Snape hated _James_ . . ."

"And he didn't think my mother was worth a damn either," continued Harry, "because she was Muggle-born. . . 'Mudblood,' he called her . . ."

Minerva was disoriented. "This is all my fault. My fault. I sent Filius to fetch Snape tonight, I actually sent for him to come and help us! If I hadn't alerted Snape to what was going on, he might never have joined forces with the Death Eaters. I don't think he knew they were there before Filius told him, I don't think he knew they were coming."

Remus frowned. "It isn't your fauly, Minerva. We all wanted more help, we were glad to think Snape was on his way . . ."

Harry was desperate to know everything. "So, when he arrived at the fight, he joined in on the Death Eaters' side?"

Minerva sighed. "I don't know exactly how it happened. It's all so confusing . . . Dumbledore had told us that he would be leaving the school for a few hours and that we were to patrol the corridors just in case . . . Remus, Bill, and Nymphadora were to join us. . . and so we patrolled. All seemed quiet. Every secret passageway out of the school was covered. We knew nobody could fly in. There were powerful enchantments on every entrance into the castle. I still don't know how the Death Eaters can possibly have entered . . ."

"I do," Harry said and he talked about Vanishing Cabinets and a pair that had one in Hogwarts. Ron continued the story.

"I messed up, Harry. We did like you told us: so we thought he must be in the Room of Requirement, so me, Ginny, and Neville went to keep watch on it . . . but Malfoy got past us."

Ginny spoke up, "He came out of the room about an hour after we started keeping watch. He was on his own, clutching that awful shriveled arm—"

"His Hand of Glory." cut in Ron, "Gives light only to the holder, remember?"

Ginny went on. "Anyway, he must have been checking whether the coast was clear to let the Death Eaters out, because the moment he saw us he threw something into the air and it all went pitch-black—"

"—Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder," Ron cut in again. "Fred and George's. I'm going to be having a word with them about who they let buy their products."

Ginny continued. "We tried everything, lumos, incendio. Nothing would penetrate the darkness; all we could do was grope our way out of the corridor again, and meanwhile we could hear people rushing past us. Obviously Malfoy could see because of the hand thing and was guiding them, but we didn't dare use any curses or anything in case we hit each other, and by the time we'd reached a corridor that was light, they'd gone."

Remus picked up hoarsely. "Luckily, Ron, Ginny, and Neville ran into us almost immediately and told us what had happened. We found the Death Eaters minutes later, heading in the direction of the Astronomy Tower. Malfoy obviously hadn't expected more people to be on the watch; he seemed to have exhausted his supply of Darkness Powder, at any rate. A fight broke out, they scattered and we gave chase. One of them, Gibbon, broke away and headed up the tower stairs—."

"To set off the Mark?" Harry asked.

Remus nodded. "He must have done, yes, they must have arranged that before they left the Room of Requirement. But I don't think Gibbon liked that idea of waiting up there alone for Dumbledore, because he came running back downstairs to rejoin the fight and was hit by a killing curse that just missed me."

"So if Ron was watching The Room of Requirement with Ginny and Neville," Harry turned to Hermione, "were you—?"

"Outside Snape's office, yes, with Luna." said Hermione, close to tears. "We hung around for ages outside it and nothing happened . . . We didn't know what was going on upstairs, Ron had taken the map . . . It was nearly midnight when Professor Flitwick came sprinting down into the dungeons. He was shouting about Death Eaters in the castle, I don't think he really registered that Luna and I were there at all, he just burst his way into Snape's office and we heard him saying that Snape had to go back with him and help and then we heard a loud thump and Snape came hurtling out of his room and he saw us and—and—"

"What?" Harry asked, impatiently.

"I was so stupid, Harry! He said Professor Flitwick had collapsed and that we should go and take care of him while he—while he went to help fight the Death Eaters—. We went into his office to see if we could help Professor Flitwick and found him unconscious on the floor . . . and oh, it's so obvious now, Snape must have Stupefied Flitwick, but we didn't realize, Harry, we didn't realize, we just let Snape go!"

"It's not your fault." Remus said, firmly. "Hermione, had you not obeyed Snape and got out of the way, he probably would have killed you and Luna." All of our opinions of Severus had worsened tonight.

"So then he came upstairs," Harry said, "and he found the place where you were all fighting . . ."

I decided to continue it. "We were in trouble, we were losing. Gibbon was down, but the rest of the Death Eaters seemed ready to fight to the death. Neville had been hurt, Bill had been savaged by Greyback . . . It was all dark . . . curses flying everywhere . . . The Malfoy boy had vanished, he must have slipped past, up the stairs . . . then more of them ran after him, but once of them blocked the stair behind them with some kind of curse . . . Neville ran at it and got thrown up into the air—"

"None of us could break though, and that massive Death Eater was still firing off jinxes all over the place, they were bouncing off the walls, and barely missing us. . ." Ron trailed off.

"And then Snape was there," I said, "and then he wasn't—"

"I saw him running toward us, but that huge Death Eater's jinx just missed me right afterward and I ducked and lost track of things," Ginny said.

"I saw him run straight through the cursed barrier as though it wasn't there. I tried to follow him, but was thrown back just like Neville . . ." Remus said.

"He must have known a spell we didn't. After all—he was the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. . . I just assumed that he was in a hurry to chase after the Death Eaters who'd escaped up to the tower . . ." whispered Minerva.

"He was, but to help them, not to stop them . . . and I'll bet you had to have a Dark Mark to get through that barrier—so what happened when he came back down?" asked Harry.

Remus sighed. "Well, the big Death Eater had just fired off a hex that caused half the ceiling to fall in, and also broke the curse clocking the stairs. We all ran forward—those of us who were still standing anyway—and then Snape and the boy emerged out of the dust—obviously, none of us attacked them—"

"We just let them pass," I said, regrettably. "We thought they were being chased by the Death Eaters—and next thing, the other Death Eaters and Greyback were back and we were fighting again—I thought I heard Snape shout something, but I don't know what—"

Harry spoke up, "He shouted, 'It's over.' He'd done what he'd meant to do. "

We all fell silent, shaken by the events of tonight. Then, Molly, Arthur, and Fleur came running in.

"Molly—Arthur—" began Minerva, "I am so sorry—"

"Bill," cried Molly, going to her son, "Oh, _Bill_!" Remus and I got up from the chairs so they could sit.

Arthur turned to Minerva. "You said Greyback attacked him? But he hadn't transformed? So what does that mean? What will happen to Bill?"

"We don't yet know," Minerva looked at Remus.

"There will probably be some contamination, Arthur," Remus said. "It is an odd case, possibly unique . . . We don't know what his behavior might be like when he awakens . . ."

Arthur looked troubled. "And Dumbledore . . . Minerva is it true . . . Is he really . . . ?" A nod from Minerva made Arthur more upset. "Dumbledore gone."

Molly was crying over Bill. She looked at his mutilated face. "Of course, it doesn't matter how he looks . . . It's not r-really important . . . but he was a very handsome little b-boy . . . always very handsome. . . and he was g-going to be married!"

Fleur narrowed her eyes. "And what do you mean by zat? What do you mean, ''e was _going _to be married?'"

"Well—only that—" Molly started, but Fleur cut in, outraged.

"You theenk Bill will not wish to marry me anymore? You theenk, because of these bites, he will not love me?"

Molly shook. "No, that's not what I—"

"Because 'e will!" exclaimed Fleur. "It would take more zan a werewolf to stop Bill loving me!"

"Well, yes, I'm sure," said Molly, "But I thought perhaps—given how—how he—"

"You thought I would not weesh to marry him? Or per'aps, you haped?" Fleur was pretty angry. "What do I care how he looks? I am good-looking enough for both of us, I theenk! All these scars show is zat me husband is brave! And I shall do zat!"

Molly paused. "Our Great-Auntie Muriel has a very beautiful tiara—goblin-made—which I am sure I could persuade her to lend you for the wedding. She is very fond of Bill, you know, and it would look lovely with your hair."

"Thank you." said Fleur stiffly, "I am sure zat will be lovely." The two women than started to cry and hug. Myself, however, was starting to get really mad. Fleur didn't care that he was bitten, and why should I? All my emotions from this year just let loose as I turned to Remus.

"You see!" I glared at Remus. "She still wants to marry him, even though he's been bitten! She doesn't care!"

Remus got tense. "It's different. Bill will not be a full werewolf. The cases are completely—"

"But I don't care either, I don't care!" I grabbed his robes and shook him. "I've told you a million times that I love you and I want to be with you forever!"

Remus stared at the floor, not meeting my eyes. "And I've told _you_ a million times, that I am too old for you, too poor . . . too dangerous . . ."

"I've said all along you're taking a ridiculous line on this, Remus." said Molly.

"I am not being ridiculous," said Remus. "Tonks deserves somebody young and whole."

"But she wants you," said Arthur, smiling a little. "And after all, Remus, young and whole men do not necessarily remain so." He looked Bill sadly.

"This is . . . not the moment to discuss it." Remus said, avoiding everybody's eyes. "Dumbledore is dead . . ."

"Dumledore would have been happier than anybody to think that there was a little more love in the world," said Minerva curtly as Hagrid walked in.

"I've . . . I've done it, Professor." He said. "M-moved him. Professor Sprout's got the kids back in bed. Professor Flitwick's lyin' down, but he says he'll be all righ' in a jiffy, an' Professor Slughorn says the Ministry's bin informed."

"Thank you Hagrid." said Minerva, getting up. "I shall have to see the Ministry once they get here. Hagrid, please tell the Heads of Houses—Slughorn can represent Slytherin—that I want to see them in my office forthwith. I would like you to join us too."

Hagrid nodded and left. Minerva turned to Harry. "Before I meet them I would like a quick word with you, Harry. If you'll come with me . . ."

Harry said goodbye to his friends and left with Minerva.

I muttered something about being tired and left. I had walked about halfway along the corridor when I heard footsteps behind me.

Remus was there, running to catch up with me.

"Well?" I asked, crossing my arms.

"I was wrong. About everything," he said.

"And?" I asked.

"And I was wondering if maybe you'll forgive me enough to start again." He asked.

"Well . . ." I trailed off, leaving him in suspense. He looked really sorry and I knew that he realized it was better to spend whatever time we had left, together. ". . . I suppose so," I said, smiling.

He grinned and embraced me. It felt so nice to have his arms around me again.


	39. Endings and Beginnings

Tonks's POV

As I got ready to go to the funeral, I discovered that my metamorphmagus powers were back. I smiled grimly, as I went started experimenting with it. I spent a little too much time on that, and I had to scramble to get ready on time. My hair went to its natural unnatural bubble-gum pink.

I met up with the other Order members and we all went to the funeral together. I held hands with Remus the whole time, mostly for emotional support. I also wasn't going to let him leave again.

I was crying the whole time during the funeral. It was a beautiful ceremony, simply memorable.

Remus and I went for a walk around the grounds. It was a beautiful day, too beautiful.

Truthfully, I was scared. Years ago, when I joined the Order, I knew that Dumbledore would always have a plan, a good plan, and a foolproof plan. Dumbledore just made everyone feel safe. I know I can fight, but still, Dumbledore was the only one You-Know-Who feared. And with Dumbledore gone…things will be worse. Remus says Dumbledore's plan revolves around Harry. There is so much pressure put around that kid. I hope he can do it, whatever he has to do.

A couple nights later, Remus and I were walking along in the park. The sunset was beautiful. The drops of red from the sky cascaded down to meet the sun, as the yellow and pinks slowly faded. Dark purple settled over. I was admiring the sunset, and thinking how sunsets were much better than sunrises, when I noticed that Remus wasn't in my peripheral vision anymore.

Thinking he'd left, I spun around to see him on one knee, a ring held out. I managed a yes, before I started crying again. I hugged him and kissed him and smiled. "Soon as possible?" I asked, referring to the marriage.

He nodded. "Soon as possible," he promised.


	40. Wedding

Tonks's POV

I scowled at the invitation. Even though it was a small and private wedding, my mother insisted on formal invitations, and a formal wedding. It's not going to be as big as Bill's will be. (They got engaged last year, and still haven't been married yet!) The invitation read:

You are invited to the wedding of

Nymphadora Vulpecula Tonks

Remus John Lupin

On July 22nd

Why did my mom have to put my first and middle name on there? I set the invitation down and looked in the mirror. I nervously studied my wedding dress. It was strapless, white, and it had a corset. The fabric was all frilly and had layers, like a flower. The edges of each layer were lined with a really pretty purple. It was a princess dress. My veil had a circle of purple flowers, with little pink buds in them. My hair was the same pink as the buds. I picked up my bouquet of flowers, a mix of purple, pink, and white, and turned as Hermione, Ginny, Molly, and my mother came in. Hermione and Ginny were both wearing purple dresses, as they were my bridesmaids.

"You ready, sweetie?" asked my mother. I nodded.

The wedding was held outside. There was one tent and many chairs. I stood next to my dad as the music started. Hermione and Ginny walked down the aisle first, and then stopped as I started walking.

Everyone stood and looked at me. It was really self-conscious, and I nervously walked down. I don't mean to sound all cheesy, but when I saw Remus, he smiled at me, and I felt better.

My dad kissed me on the cheek and I stood next to Remus. I don't remember much except for saying "I do," and then kissing him.

We had a small party afterwards. I changed into a bright purple dress with a big bow in it (I also lengthened my hair and put a purple bow in it too). The party was mainly "Congratulations," from people and hugs. It mostly consisted of Order people, with some of my family and friends.

I was ecstatic. I barely let go of Remus all day, happy to be finally married.


	41. Battle of the Seven Potters

**A/N: Sorry for the long wait, this chapter is just lengthy and time-consuming to do. And I barely had any time.**

Tonks's POV

I got everything ready for the escape attempt. I sighed and looked at Remus. "Ready?" I asked, and he nodded, smiling. I smiled back, and went over to where the others were meeting. We were the last to arrive, so the group left right away. We flew over to Harry's house, with Disillusionment charms.

Harry let us into his house and we gathered around his kitchen. I sat on top of the washing machine, looking around as Harry talked with Kingsley.

"Harry, guess what?" I said excitedly, unable to keep it a secret anymore. I showed him my left hand, where a beautiful ring glistened on my ring finger.

"You got married?" Harry exclaimed, looking at Remus.

"I'm sorry you couldn't be there, Harry, it was very quiet," said Remus.

"That's brilliant, congrat—" started Harry, but Mad-Eye interrupted him.

"All right, all right, we'll have time for a cozy catch-up later!" Mad-Eye started filling Harry in on the new plan. The one that involved polyjuice potion and seven Potters.

Mad-Eye lined up Fleur, Fred, George, Ron, Hermione, and Mundungus. They all drank the potion with Harry's hair in it, and began changing into him. The process was actually pretty funny.

Mad-Eye began pairing up Potters and protectors.

"Good. The pairs will be as follows: Mundungus will be traveling with me, by broom—"

Mundungus started to whine, "Why'm I with you?"

"Because you're the one that needs watching," said Mad-Eye, making a valid and reasonable point for once. "Arthur and Fred—"

"I'm George," said the one Potter (no idea who it was, just saying). "Can't you even tell us apart when we're Harry?"

"Sorry, George—"

"I'm only yanking your wand, I'm Fred really—"

"Enough messing around! The other one—George or Fred or whoever you are—you're with Remus. Miss Delacour—"

"I'm taking Fleur on a thestral. She's not that fond of brooms," said Bill.

Mad-Eye nodded and continued talking. "Miss Granger with Kingsley, again by threstal—" Hermione looked relieved. What was with brooms? They were awesome! At least Ginny was fond of brooms and Quidditch and all that.

I smiled at Ron, "Which leaves you and me, Ron!" I said cheerfully, knocking over a mug tree as I waved to him.

Hagrid smiled at Harry. "An' you're with me, Harry. That all righ'? We'll be on the bike, brooms an' threstals can't take me weight, see. Not a lot o' room on the seat with me on it, though, so you'll be in the sidecar."

"That's great," said Harry hesitantly.

Mad-Eye explained some more. Honestly, I think he is the only one who understood all of the motives and tricks behind this plan completely. "We think the Death Eaters will expect you to be on a broom. Snape's had plenty of time to tell them everything about you he's never mentioned before, so if we do run into any Death Eaters, we're betting they'll choose one of the Potters who look at home on a broomstick. All right then. I make it three minutes until we're supposed to leave. No point locking the back door, it won't keep the Death Eaters out when they come looking . . . come on . . ."

We headed outside and got into formation. I mounted on my broom, and waited for the signal. Auror instincts in me were very queasy. Something was going to happen.

Finally Mad-Eye gave the signal. "All right then. Everyone ready, please; I want us all to leave at exactly the same time or the whole point of the diversion's lost."

I could feel Ron get on behind me. "Hold tight now, Ron," I said, not wanting him to fall off. I wasn't the safest person on a broom.

Mad-Eye started shouting, "Good luck, everyone. See you all in about an hour at the Burrow. On the count of three. One . . . two . . . THREE."

I kicked off and soared into the night sky.

Immediately we were surrounded by Death Eaters. "Wands out!" I yelled, shooting spells at them. I knew we were in trouble.

Unfortunately, the Lestranges decided to pay us a visit. I sped forward, dodging their curses. Rodolphus glanced at Bellatrix, who was looking pleased, and I took my chance. The light from the spell shot out and hit Rodolphus hard. He swerved and begun to fall with his broomstick. I knew he would fly away, but he was injured and out of the fight for now.

Bellatrix snorted, and we started to duel. I was preoccupied with Bellatrix, yet Ron was doing amazing, stunning all of the other Death Eaters. She shot a particularly close one and I quickly dived and then came back up. I was glad that I was comfortable on a broomstick. Bellatrix certainly wasn't going to give up. We were very close to the boundaries of the safe house, if I could just keep it up a little while more.

I shot at Bellatrix, who flung back and then started speeding forward again. I nervously sped up and was just about to cross the boundary when another Death Eater popped up. Ron shot a spell right at their head. "Nice job!" I said, as we crossed into the boundaries.

We entered the Wealey's Auntie Muriel's house. She was fussing over us and how we missed the Portkey to the Burrow. I sighed and mounted the broom again. It looked like we were going to have to fly to the Burrow now.

Ted's POV

I sat at the table, nervously waiting. We were expecting Harry (the real one) and Hagrid to come any moment. Dromeda was more nervous, pacing back and forth. Then, we heard a crash.

"Who's there?" I shouted, "Is it Potter? Are you Harry Potter?" Dromeda went out to look through the window.

"They've crashed, Ted! Crashed in the garden!" she shouted. We rushed outside to find both unconscious.

I brought them inside, and put Harry on the couch. I fixed his injuries and then waited for him to awake.

Finally he opened his eyes. "Hagrid?"

"Hagrid's fine, son, the wife's seeing to him now. How are you feeling? Anything else broken? I've fixed your ribs, your tooth, and your arm. I'm Ted, by the way, Ted Tonks—Dora's father."

Harry tried to sit up. "Voldemort—"

"Easy, now," I said, making him lie back down. "That was a very nasty crush you just had. What happened, anyway? Something go wrong with the bike? Arthur Weasley overstretch himself again, him and his Muggle contraptions?"

"No, Death Eaters, loads of them—we were chased—"

"Death Eaters?" I cut across sharply. "What d'you mean, Death Eaters? I thought they didn't know you were being move tonight, I thought—"

"They knew," said Harry shortly.

I glanced up at the ceiling, holding my breath. I relaxed a little when nothing happened. "Well, we know our protective charms hold, then, don't we? They shouldn't be able to get within a hundred yards of the place in any direction."

Hagrid entered the room, knocking over tables. "Harry! Blimey, Harry, how did yeh get out o' that? I thought we were both goners."

"Yeah me too. I can't believe—"

Harry noticed Dromeda entering the room. She was in the shadows, and resembled her sister, the Death Eater Bellatrix. Harry obviously thought so too. "You!" He shouted, and looked for his wand.

"Your wand's here, son," I said, handing it to him. "It fell right beside you, I picked it up. And that's my wife you're shouting at."

"Oh, I'm—I'm sorry," said Harry sheepishly as Dromeda walked into the light.

"What happened to our daughter? Hagrid said you were ambushed; where is Nymphadora?" asked Dromeda, worriedly.

"I don't know," Harry said, "We don't know what happened to anyone else."

I exchanged worried looks with my wife. The fact that Death Eaters were in the sky tonight was worrisome. I know Dora was a qualified Auror, but she was still a young girl. She just got married, and if anything happened to her. . .

"The Portkey," said Harry suddenly, "We've got to get back to the Burrow and find out—then we'll be able to send you word, or—or Tonks will, once she's –"

"Dora'll be okay, Dromeda," I said, "She knows her stuff, she's been in plenty of tight spots with the Aurors. The Portkey's through here. It's supposed to leave in three minutes, if you want to take it."

"Yeah, we do," said Harry, getting his pack. "I—" He looked at Dromeda, at a loss for words on how to apologize. "I'll tell Tonks—Dora—to send word, when she . . . Thanks for patching us up, thanks for everthing. I—"

I went to the Portkey, and Harry and Hagrid followed me. "There you go, son. That's the Portkey." I pointed to a hairbrush on the table.

"Thanks," said Harry, putting his finger on it.

"Hold on," Hagrid said, "Harry, where's Hedwig?"

"She . . . she got hit," Harry said, painfully. I frowned, feeling sorry for the boy.

Hagrid patted him on the shoulder. "Never mind. Never mind. She had a great old life—"

"Hagrid!" I said warningly as the hairbrush glowed. He quickly touched it and they were transported away. I sighed, hoping Dora was okay.

Remus's POV

Tonight has been rough. First George losing his ear, and then Harry giving himself away with disarming. All I could about Dora was wish that she was safe. Molly said they missed the Portkey, and were traveling by broom. (I call her Dora now, the name both of us like).

Finally Hermione saw them, "It's them!" Dora skidded to a stop and jumped off the broom, "Remus!" she called, and threw herself into my arms. I was so relieved to see her safe that I could barely speak.

Dora stopped hugging me and turned to Harry, Ron, and Hermione. "Ron was great. Wonderful. Stunned one of the Death eaters, straight to the head, and when you're aiming at a moving target from a flying broom—"

"You did?" asked Hermione, looking at Ron.

I turned away from the kids and to Dora. "So what kept you? What happened?" I said, unable to keep to anxiety from my voice. All the emotion in my voice must have sound close to anger.

"Bellatrix," said Dora. "She wants me quite as much as she wants Harry, Remus, she tried very hard to kill me. I just wish I'd got her, I owe Bellatrix. But we definitely injured Rodolphus . . . Then we got to Ron's Auntir Muriel's and we'd missed out Portkey and she was fussing over us—"

I nodded, mad at Bellatrix. One day, they will have a duel to the end. I hope that would be awhile away.

Dora turned to everyone else. "So what happened to you lot?"

Stories were told, as we waited for the last pair to arrive: Bill and Fleur. Kingsley eventually had to leave to check on the Prime Minister. At one point Molly and Arthur went over to Dora and me.

"Thank you," said Molly, "for our sons."

"Don't be silly, Molly." said Dora.

"How's George?" I asked.

"What's wrong with him?" Ron asked.

"He's lost—" began Molly, but was cut off from the arrival of Bill and Fleur. They were unscathed, but brought terrible news. Mad-Eye was dead.

I knew how Dora must be feeling. She was so close to Mad-Eye, he was like a close uncle to her.

I volunteered with Bill to go looked for Mad-Eye's body. We searched all over, but could not find it. Finally, we accepted defeat.


	42. Lazy Day

**A/N: Suggestive stuff in this chapter. It's not very descriptive, though.**

Tonks's POV

It was such a nice day outside, but I was bored and lazy.

"Can't we just sleep all day?" I asked Remus, as he brought me breakfast in bed.

"No," said Remus, smiling.

"Ugh," I complained, putting a pillow over my head.

"Get up, Dora," said Remus, shaking me.

I sat up, "Thanks for breakfast, Remus." I shoved the food into my mouth.

Remus chuckled, and got into bed next to me. "You should get out today, Dora."

"No," I whined, setting the tray off to the side and hugging Remus. "One lazy day? Please?"

"Fine," said Remus. He laid back. "One lazy day."

"Yay," I kissed him on his cheek, "I knew I could convince you."

Remus snorted and turned so he could kiss me properly on the mouth.

"If today's going to be lazy…" I said slowly, smiling maliciously.

He groaned. "Oh no."

I laughed and kissed him passionately.

I must have fallen asleep because one second it was morning, then the sun was setting.

"Hmm, did you have fun, Remus?"

"Yeah," said Remus, sleepily.

"Where did all of our clothes go?"

"No idea…I think they're on the floor."

"When did that happen?"

"Noon?"

"Oh, okay," I smiled and put my head on his chest.

"Best lazy day ever," I said, yawning.


	43. Birthday Party

Tonks's POV

I yawned as I brushed out my hair, "Ready to go to the party?" I asked, Remus.

"Yeah," said Remus. He smiled and ruffled my hair. I glared at him, and just used my metamorphmagus powers to put it back in place.

"Let's go," I said, cheerfully, grabbing my purse.

The party was just a birthday dinner for Harry, yet a lot of people were there. Including my long lost best friend, Charlie.

"Charlie!" I exclaimed, running towards him.

"Hey, Tonks. I haven't seen you in ages. Hey, Remus, how are you," Charlie shook hands with Remus.

"I'm good, and you?" asked Remus, politely.

"Good. So, you're stuck with the job of babysitting Tonks?" Charlie joked.

I snorted. "Charlie, Remus is my husband."

"Wow, congratulations!" said Charlie. "Who knew you would get married?"

"Obviously not you," I joked. Remus kissed my cheek, and then left to go talk to some other guests.

"So, how are the dragons?" I asked Charlie, slightly worried about Remus.

"Pretty good. I wish it was legal to marry them, but sadly…" Charlie looked glum.

I laughed, "There's always a way."

"Yeah, I guess," said Charlie, sadly.

"Still can't believe you gave up Quidditch for this," I said, shaking my head.

"Come on, dragons are so awesome! You should come to Romania, you would love it."

"Maybe after the war, Charles," I said sadly. "I have a duty here."

He nodded, "Of course."

"Invited to Bill and Fleur's wedding?" I asked, changing to subject of the war.

"I hope so, Bill's my brother, after all." said Charlie.

"Oh right, forgot," I said. "I've been so forgetful lately…it's weird."

"Side-effect of being a klutz, probably," said Charlie, shrugging.

"Yeah…" I said, trailing off. Remus looked lonely, so I headed off to talk to him.

We were chatting about what we got for our 17th birthday, when Arthur's patronus appeared. _Minister of Magic is coming with me._

"We shouldn't be here," said Remus, quickly, "Harry—I'm sorry—I'll explain another time—"

He grabbed my wrist and we exited via over the fence. I said a silent thanks to Arthur for warning everyone beforehand.

"That was close," I said, "But we are just too quick," I said, cheerfully, and then stopped when I saw his sour expressions.

"Too close," he muttered. "We need to be quicker."

"Going to be hard in a couple of months," I said, smiling.

"Why?" Remus frowned.

"…I'm pregnant," I said.

I waited for Remus to say something, but he didn't. He was too shocked.


	44. Wedding at the Burrow

Tonks's POV

I smiled into the mirror, preparing my hair. It was long, blonde, and curly, and pretty stylish, if you ask me. I had to look my best for the wedding. I was wearing a pretty blue dress that was really sparkly. The end skimmed the floor. It was sleeveless, but it had a back. I thought it was a pretty awesome dress.

"Ready?" I asked Remus.

"Honey, I was ready to go 20 minutes ago," replied Remus.

I twirled around and walked over to him. "Let's go."

The wedding was set on a beautiful day. We saw a curly-haired redhead that we knew was Harry. Arthur had mentioned his disguise.

"Wotcher," I said as Harry turned around. "Arthur told us you were the one with the curly hair. Sorry about last night," I lowered my voice to a whisper as we walked to our seats. "The ministry's being very anti-werewolf at the moment and we thought our presence might not do you any favors."

"It's fine, I understand." Harry said, talking more to Remus, than to me. I appreciated the fact that he cared about Remus's feelings. Remus gave a small smile, and then went back to his gloomy expression. What was up with him?

The ceremony was lovely. After they got married, the floor cleared to a dance floor, and tables circled around it. I sat a table with Remus, sipping champagne that was floating around. I was unnerved by Remus's depression. Something else was up, but what, I really didn't know.

"Mind if I dance?" I asked Remus.

"No, go ahead," said Remus.

I stood up and dragged Remus up. "One dance?" I pleaded.

He agreed, and we danced for a while, having fun. We twirled and stomped all over the dance floor.

"Dora, I have to rest now," said Remus, sitting down,

"Okay, see you later," I said, not ready to stop dancing.

I danced with Charlie now, since Remus was being a party pooper.

"Nice to see you again, Tonks." said Charlie.

"Nice to see you remembered to call me Tonks," I said. "Although, that's technically not my surname anymore…still, Tonks is better than my first name."

"How are you?" asked Charlie.

"Swell. I love weddings, they're so happy." I said.

"Yeah, it's nice to see Bill really happy." said Charlie.

"Did Ginny tell you what she thought?" I asked, snorting at the memory.

"Oh yeah, with you and Bill…" Charlie laughed "weirdest paring ever."

"Weirder than you and Norberta?" I asked, mischievously.

We both burst out laughing. Bill and Fleur were dancing in the middle. We were all having a good time, until Kingsley's patronus appeared.

_The Ministry has fallen. Scrimgeour is dead. They are coming._


	45. Fight at the Burrow

Tonks's POV

I saw Remus in my peripheral vision, and both of us drew out our wands and shouted "Protego!" The spells circled around, but they couldn't keep out the Death Eaters forever. People were Disapparating right and left. I made sure Ginny and Luna were okay. Harry, Ron, and Hermione had vanished, but they were probably safe.

The Weasleys, Delacours, Remus, I, and other order members stayed around as we made sure everyone was okay. The Death Eaters interrogated each of us, for what felt like hours.

"So, Mrs. Nymphadora Lupin," said one of the Death Eaters snidely as he interrogated me in a spare room.

"Yes, that's my name," I said coldly, narrowing my eyes.

"How did you come to know the Weasleys?" the Death Eater asked, trying to sound nonchalant.

"I was friends with their second oldest son, Charlie, growing up." I replied, staring him in the eyes.

"You worked with Arthur, is that true?" he asked.

"Not really, we were on the same floor, but we didn't interact at work. No reason to." I shrugged. The Death Eater seemed frustrated that I wasn't spilling anything. Did he forget that I was an Auror?

"How did you meet Remus?" asked the Death Eater.

I kept cool, "I ran into him at a Muggle diner."

"What was he doing at a Muggle diner?" asked the Death Eater, nonbelieving.

"Trying to just eat dinner without the glares," I responded, sharply.

"And what were you doing there?" the Death Eater asked, narrowing his eyes.

"I liked that diner. It was nice and peaceful. My father is a Muggle-born, and he took my family there a couple of times." I said smoothly.

He snorted. "You seem rather attached to young Ginny and Luna."

"I was there during all of the wedding preparations and hung around them. I wasn't much use, since I was a klutz." I replied.

He nodded, and then, finding no other questions to ask me, let me go.

"You okay?" asked Remus, hugging me when I returned to where the other people were.

"Yeah, I'm fine. It wasn't too bad."

"Alright," said Remus.

Hours later, they let us go. No one spilled any deep secrets, and they had to admit this was a normal wizard wedding.

I said farewell to the other guests, and left with Remus to my parent's house to check on them.

I knew immediately something was wrong when I stood in front of their house. The door was creaking open, and the curtains were hastily thrown shut.

I ran inside, wand ready, with Remus right behind me. I stopped as I looked around. Someone had been here. I ran into the family room, and saw my dad lying on the floor.

"Dad!" I cried, running over to him and kneeling by his side.

Remus knelt down next to me. "I think he's been tortured. Let's get him on the couch."

As Remus did that, I looked for my mum. I found her on the kitchen floor. I carried her to her room, and set her down there.

"It's my entire fault," I said to Remus.

"No, it's not." said Remus. "They are fine now. Relax."

Eventually, my dad came round, and then my mum. Soon, we all were seated around the dining room table with mugs of tea.

"What happened?" I asked, nervously.

"Did anything happen at the wedding?" My dad asked.

"Yeah, Death Eaters came. Everyone is safe, though," replied Remus.

"Well, the Death Eaters came knocking." Dad said. "We got our wands, but they came in and overpowered us."

"They interrogated us with the Cruciatus Curse," said Mum, disgusted.

"We're fine, though, just a bit exhausted. Don't worry Dora," said my Dad. "We said nothing, and eventually, they just gave up."

"Okay," I said, "I'm glad you guys are safe now." I sighed.

"Dora, be cautious," warned my mum. "Especially with your condition."

"Yeah," I said slowly. I kept forgetting I was pregnant and needed to be extra safe since I had a baby in me.

"Why don't you stay here?" proposed my Dad. "We all will keep each other safe, and look after each other."

"Yeah, I guess so," I said. "You fine with that, Remus?"

"Yeah, it'll be nice. Thank you," Remus said, to my parents. Again, I got the feeling that something was up with him.


	46. Coward

Remus's POV

I washed my face, and stared at my reflection. I looked at myself, a werewolf. I sighed and sat down, angry. I had told myself that it would be okay to date Dora, and then, eventually marry her. I always take my wolfsbane potion, and make sure she is safe. But I never thought what would happen if she got pregnant. Now a little unborn baby could inherit my lycanthrope. I feel so ashamed. I had put two innocent people in danger, just because I was being selfish. I didn't stop to think about my actions. I made a whole mess because of it.

I stood up. I felt awful, but I knew I couldn't face Dora. I couldn't pretend to not be worried about our child. I kept endangering her and her family. It would be better if I just left, before I was ridiculed and jeered at, before the knowledge got out about what I did. A werewolf shouldn't marry, and shouldn't have a child. I was pushing it by dating, but I never thought it would get this far.

Later that night, when everyone was asleep, I got up. I threw on my cloak and grabbed my wand. I sighed, looking down at my wife, who was sleeping peaceful. I kissed her forehead goodbye and left.

I had a feeling that Harry would be hiding out at Number 12, Grimmauld Place. I wasn't the only one in thinking that, however. Death Eaters were there, watching for some sign. I had to hide out for three days until I finally decided to Apparate right outside of Number 12.

I tapped on the front door, and the locks unlocked, and I stepped inside. I closed the door behind me and Moody's voice echoed throughout the hall, "Severus Snape?" It asked. Then a dust figure came up,

"It was not I who killed you, Albus," I said, quietly.

"Don't move!" someone shouted. I recognized Harry's voice. The portrait of Mrs. Black opened and started screeching. Two more figures ran in, probably Ron and Hermione.

I raised my hands, "Hold your fire, it's me, Remus!"

"Oh, thank goodness," said Hermione.

Harry was cautious, though. "Show yourself!"

I stepped into the lamplight, still holding my hands high. "I am Remus John Lupin, werewolf, sometimes known as Moony, one of the four creators of the Marauder's Map, married to Nymphadora, usually known as Tonks, and I taught you how to produce a Patronus, Harry, which takes the form of a stag."

"Oh, all right, but I had to check," said Harry.

I nodded. "Speaking as your ex-Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, I quite agree that you had to check. Ron, Hermione, you shouldn't be quite so quick to lower your defenses."

We all sat down at a table, and I brought out some butterbeers. I learned where Harry, Ron, and Hermione went after the wedding. I was alarmed to here that the Death Eaters had found them on a muggle street right away. Something was up. I told them what happened at the wedding after they left. I also said how the Ministry is determined to find Harry. We talked about Hogwarts and Severus taking over.

And then we got to the point of me coming to them.

"I'll understand if you can't confirm this, Harry, but the Order is under the impression that Dumbledore left you a mission," I said slowly.

Harry nodded, "He did, and Ron and Hermione are in on it and they're coming with me."

"Can you confide in me what the mission is?" I asked.

Harry looked uncomfortable, "I can't, Remus, I'm sorry. If Dumbledore didn't tell you I don't think I can."

I was disappointed that they rejected me, "I thought you'd say that. But I might still be of some use to you. You know what I am and what I can do. I could come with you to provide protection. There would be no need to tell me exactly what you were up to."

Harry seemed to be agreeing with me. Hermione, on the other hand, frowned. "But what about Tonks?"

"What about her?" I asked, nonchalantly.

"Well," Hermione said, "you're married! How does she feel about you going away with us?"

"Tonks will be perfectly safe. She'll be at her parents' house," I said, indifferent.

"Remus," Hermione said, "is everything all right…you know…between you and—"

"Everything is fine, thank you," I said sharply, wanting to avoid this conversation. I had to explain myself though. "Tonks is going to have a baby."

Hermione smiled, "Oh, how wonderful!"

Ron grinned, "Excellent!"

Harry smiled, "Congratulations."

I tried to smile, but failed. "So…do you accept my offer? Will three become four? I cannot believe that Dumbledore would have disapproved, he appointed me your Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, after all. And I must tell you that I believe that we are facing magic many of us have never encountered or imagined."

The trio exchanged looks. Harry spoke up, "Just—just to be clear. You want to leave Tonks at her parents' house and come away with us?"

"She'll be perfectly safe there, they'll look after her," I said, ending the issue (at least, for me), "Harry, I'm sure James would have wanted me to stick with you."

Harry's response came slowly, "Well, I'm not. I'm pretty sure my father would have wanted to know why you aren't sticking with your own kid, actually."

I paled. "You don't understand."

"Explain, then," Harry said defensive.

I swallowed. "I—I made a grave mistake in marrying Tonks. I did it against my better judgment and I have regretted it very much ever since."

"I see," Harry said, "so you're just going to dump her and the kid and run off with us?"

I sprang up, furious, and overturned a chair. "Don't you understand what I've done to my wife and my unborn child? I should never have married her, I've made her an outcast!" I kicked the overturned chair, "You have only ever seen me amongst the Order, or under Dumbledore's protection at Hogwarts! You don't know how most of the Wizarding world sees creatures like me! When they know of my affliction, they can barely talk to me! Don't you see what I've done? Even her own family is disgusted by our marriage, what parents want their only daughter to marry a werewolf? And the child—the child—" I seized fistfuls of my hair, lost in my nightmares. "My kind don't usually breed! It will be like me, I am convince of it—how can I forgive myself, when I knowingly risked passing on my own condition to an innocent child? And if, by some miracle, it is not like me, then it will be better off, a hundred times so, without a father of whom it must always be ashamed!"

Hermione looked like she was about to cry, "Don't say that—how could any child be ashamed of you?"

"Oh I don't know, Hermione," cut in Harry, "I'd be pretty ashamed of him." That remark startled me, and surprised me. It was like he had hit me. Harry continued, "If the new regime thinks Muggle-borns are bad, what will they do to a half-werewolf whose father's in the Order? My father died trying to protect my mother and me, and you reckon he'd tell you to abandon your kid to go on an adventure with us?"

I narrowed my eyes, "How—how day you? This is not about a desire for—for danger or personal glory—how dare you suggest such a—"

Harry was not finished, "I think you're feeling a bit of a daredevil. You fancy stepping into Sirius's shoes—"

Hermione could see my livid face, and she tried to warn Harry with a "Harry, no!" but Harry won't stop. "I'd never have believed this. The man who taught me to fight dementors—a coward."

In a rage, I drew my wand and cast a spell at Harry, making him fly backwards. I left the house, slamming the door behind me. I Disapparated, and found myself in a park.

I stayed there, sitting on a bench, until my anger drained away. I had been a coward, running away from my problem, instead of facing it. Now, I doubt if Dora wanted me back. But I was going to go back, anyway, and be a good dad, like James.


	47. Forgiveness

Remus's POV

I stood in front of Dora's parents' house, where they all were. I took a deep breath and knocked on the door.

Andromeda opened it. When she saw me, she narrowed her eyes, and pursed her lips together. She regarded me coldly, and then, finally, said something.

"What do you want?" she asked, disgusted.

"To talk to Dora," I said.

"And why should I let you?" she asked, raising a very good point.

"Because I have to talk to her," I said, painfully.

She left, and went to go get Dora. Dora came over to the door, and my heart broke. I couldn't believe what I had done, now that I saw her. Her stomach was starting to show her pregnancy, and she looked like she slept for days.

"You?!" She exclaimed, furious.

"Dora, I know—" I started.

"No you don't! You left! You left me! You left us! You said you were never going to leave again, but you're such a liar, Remus!" she exploded.

"I came back—" I began again.

"Months later! What were you doing?! Running off, and having a grand ol' time!? I cried for days! I could barely eat! What have you been doing, exactly, Remus?!" Dora really was mad, madder than I have ever seen her.

"You're right," I said, making her stop with shock. "I was wrong to leave you. It took me a while to come back, since I was so ashamed of myself, what I did. I'm a coward, and I don't deserve you. Feel free to kick me out."

"Are you serious? I'm not letting you get away, again. Now get in here, it's cold." Numb, I stepped inside the warm house. Dora frowned, hands on her hips. "Go upstairs and get some warm clothes on." I started to go upstairs, and heard Dora call out, "and don't think I'm done with you!"

The next few days, I started to be forgiven. Andromeda didn't ignore me all the time and Ted talked to me a lot. Dora started to be more cheerful. As for me, I was deeply and completely in love again.


	48. Talking with Friends

Tonks's POV

The cold fall air was become colder as winter blew in. I was drinking some hot chocolate, as I stared outside, waiting for my guests. Finally the doorbell rang.

Remus opened it. "Bill! Fleur! Come on in," he said, inviting them inside.

"Thanks for inviting us, Remus," said Bill, "I know you guys get bored. Hey Tonks, how are you?"

"Pretty good, hi Fleur." I said.

"Hello, Tonks," said Fleur, smiling.

"You look pretty big for someone who is like 4 months pregnant." commented Bill.

"What's that supposed to mean?!" I said, annoyed.

Fleur hugged me, "I think you are expecting twins."

I shrugged, "That'll be a handful, eh Remus?"

"Yes, they will," said Remus, serious.

"So, how are you guys?" I asked.

"Pretty good. We have a cottage by the sea, which is nice." said Bill.

"Cool," I said.

The conversation went from houses to Quidditch, to goblins, and then the current war. Me and Fleur eventually broke off from the conversation and talked about how boring settling down was. Fleur was fine with lying low, but I was an Auror. I was used to being in the heat of the battle. Well, I was going to have to sit this one out, due to my baby. I want to fight, yet I want this war to be over soon.

Bill and Fleur stayed for dinner, and finally, they had to go. I sighed, and rested a hand on the bump where my baby was.

"I hope the baby won't have to see this war," I said.

Remus nodded and hugged me from behind. "Me too."


	49. Christmas Joy

Tonks's POV

"Christmas is here," I said, smiling. I watched Remus decorate the house with tinsel and holly. "Our second Christmas together." Would have been our third, but Remus isn't exactly reliable with not running off. I feel though, that the last time was going to be the last time. Now that I had my baby. I was 5 months pregnant, and was on bed rest. My bulging stomach was huge, and I could feel the baby kicking sometimes (very violent). I still was convinced I had twins.

"Yeah," said Remus, frowning over a piece of tinsel. "Does this look okay?"

I rolled my eyes, "It looks fine, Remus."

"Okay," he said, not entirely convinced. He went over to me and kissed my cheek.

"Actually it is a bit crooked," I said, grinning.

He sighed, and went back to work.

"Did you hear any news of the others?" I asked.

"No. They want me on Potterwatch."

"You should totally do it!" I said. "Can I do it?"

"It's too risky," said Remus.

"Grrrr, fine." I said.

Christmas Eve dinner was delicious, and I could barely sleep. I was too excited for presents.

"Dora, get some sleep," said Remus at 3 in the morning, after I had (accidently) woke him up.

"I'll try, but the baby is just as excited!"

Christmas was wonderful. I got a big, purple sweater from Molly that fit over me and my baby. I got a lot of baby stuff, and tons of chocolate from Remus (who probably wanted to share it. Not a chance.). Overall, it was a nice Christmas.

Remus and I got around to some baby names. I had no idea what I should name him/her. Definitely not an absurd name like mine. Remus got a list of ordinary names, though. I think I'll know when I see him/her.


	50. Grieve

Tonks's POV

The snow melted, and flowers began popping up. Some days, I would go outside, and just sit there, amidst all the beautiful flowers. It was hard for me to move around, since my belly was huge.

I thought about my dad a lot. In the fall, he had to leave, being a Muggle-born. I closed my eyes, remembering…

Remus had come back, and Ted stood up to make an announcement.

"I have decided that it's too dangerous for me to be here."

"What?!" exclaimed Andromeda, incredulous.

"Dora, Remus, and you will be fine without me. Dora is an Auror, Remus is highly trained, and you are clever. Not to mention pureblood." Ted said.

I had bit my lip, and tried not to whine. I hugged my dad, "Do you really have to go?" I asked.

"Yes, Dora. Don't worry, I'll be back when the war's over," he said, giving me a small smile.

"Alright," I mumbled.

"I'll take care of them, Ted," said Remus.

"You better." Ted chuckled, "Although, they'll be fine own their own."

Since his mind was set, we said our last goodbye's and watched him leave. I had a bad feeling in my gut, but I had dismissed it with just pregnancy symptoms. Later, I realized it was foreshadowing.

…I opened my eyes, smiling fondly of my dad. It was getting late, and I headed inside.

"Where's Remus?" I asked, sitting down at the table.

"Gone off to get some news," said Mum, making supper.

A couple minutes later, Remus entered.

"Dora, Andromeda, bad news." He said, his face grave.

He sat down at the table, and Mum also sat down.

"What is it?! Does it have to do with Ted?!" she said, impatiently.

Remus nodded. "He's…dead."

I cried out in shock, and buried my face in my hands. It felt like my heart was being ripped out. I looked up, and my mum looked numb, as if she didn't understand.

"What happened?" I whispered.

Remus sighed, "Do you remember me telling you guys about You-Know-Who's name and how it become taboo?" I nodded, thinking about the stern lecture we were given.

"Well, he was with a couple other fugitives. One of them said the name, and the snatchers came," continued Remus, "They were going to be captured, so they fought. Ted and another fugitive were killed."

I nodded in understanding, and then the tears came. Heavy tears that wouldn't stop. I could feel Remus hold me as best he could, and I started shaking as I sobbed.

Andromeda rose up, and put away dinner. She sent her daughter and son-in-law to bed, and then finally, she went to bed. There, she cried the whole night, grieving her spouse.


	51. Teddy Remus Lupin

**A/N: I can't believe it, this is the 50****th**** chapter! I've been working on this story for 6 months, and it's nearly over. I would just like to say thanks to all my reviewers. Now that this story is ending, I have no idea what to write about now. Any suggestions for me? Anyway, back to the story, some happiness after that sad last chapter.**

Tonks's POV

I was eating some ice cream when my first contraction hit. I grunted, and pushed the ice cream away. They came quicker and quicker.

"Remus!" I called.

"Yes?" asked Remus, reading the newspaper.

"The baby's coming," I said painfully. He looked up in shock. He went over to my side, and helped me onto the couch. Andromeda came running in.

"I don't trust St. Mungo's now, especially with these circumstances. Remus, can you get me some stuff?" said Andromeda, rolling up her sleeves.

The baby came out, finally. I looked at the bundle Andromeda was holding in her hands. She was smiling, and she handed the baby to me.

"It's a boy," she said.

My son was perfect. He had black hair, and brown eyes.

"He looks like you, Remus," I said.

"Not really. He looks more like you," said Remus, frowning as he started to think.

"What are you going to call him?" Andromeda asked.

"Ted, after his grandfather," said Remus.

I smiled. "And Remus, after his father. Ted Remus Lupin. Aww, look at him! Isn't he perfect?!"

"He sure is," said Remus, looking like the happiest man in the world.

Andromeda took Teddy to clean him up, and I fell asleep. I woke up to a shout.

"What?" I asked.

"Relax, dear, Remus was just surprised, that's all." said Andromeda holding Teddy.

"About what?" I asked.

Andromeda showed me Teddy. He was sleeping…and had ginger hair.

I gasped, "He's a Metamorphmagus!"

"Yes, he it. Your hair was changing the day you were born too," said Andromeda, smiling as she put Teddy in my arms.

"Well, I must be off to tell the news. First things first, godparents? I nominate Harry," said Remus.

I smiled, "I'll think he'll make an excellent godfather."

"That he would," said Remus, smiling. He kissed Teddy and me, and left.

Remus's POV

I got my cloak and quickly Apparated to Shell Cottage. There was a storm out, and I quickly ran over to the house. I knocked on the door, rather loud, so they could hear me.

"Who is it?" called out a voice from inside. It sounded like Bill.

"It is I, Remus John Lupin!" I called out. "I am a werewolf, married to Nymphadora Tonks, and you, the Secret-Keeper of Shell Cottage, told me the address and bade me come in an emergency!"

The door opened, and I came inside. Well, sort of fell, anxious to be out of the storm. I straightened, and looked around at the people there. There was Bill, Fleur, and to my surprise, Harry, Ron, and Hermione.

"It's a boy! We've named him Ted, after Dora's father!" I announced.

"Wha—? Tonks—Tonks has had the baby?" exclaimed Hermione.

"Yes, yes she's had the baby!" I said.

Hermione and Fleur said "Congratulations!" and "Blimey, a baby!" came from Ron.

"Yes—yes—a boy." I said. I went over to hug Harry.

When I released him, I smiled, "You'll be godfather?"

Harry was surprised, "M-me?"

"You, yes, of course—Dora quite agrees, no one better—"

"I—yeah—blimey—"

Fleur came over to persuade me to join them all for a drink.

"I can't stay long, I must get back." I said, smiling, "Thank you, thank you, Bill." I toasted Teddy, "To Teddy Remus Lupin, a great wizard in the making!"

"'Oo does 'e look like?" Fleur asked.

"I think he looks like Dora, but she thinks he is like me. Not much hair. It looked black when he was born, but I swear it's turned ginger in the hour since. Probably blond by the time I get back. Andromeda says Tonks's hair started changing color the day that she was born." I drained my glass, "Oh, go on then, just one more." I said, as Bill refilled it.

Finally, I had to go. "No…no…I really must get back." I put on my traveling cloak. "Good-bye, goodbye—I'll try and bring some pictures in a few day's time—they'll all be so glad to know that I've seen you—" I left, back into the storm.

Before I headed back, I went over to the Weasley's Aunt Muriel's to tell them about Teddy. Everyone was very happy.

It was very late when I got back, and I was surprised to see Dora still up.

"What are you doing up?" I asked, hanging up my cloak.

"Teddy won't sleep," Dora said, yawning.

"Guess who I saw at Shell Cottage?" I said, keeping my voice calm.

"Who?" asked Dora.

"Harry, Ron, and Hermione." I said, smiling.

"No way! What were they doing there?" she exclaimed, incredulous.

"I don't know, I think they just needed a place," I said. "Anyway, it's late. Let's get some sleep."

"Alright, I'll sleep, and you watch Teddy," said Dora, heading upstairs.


	52. Death

Tonks's POV

I was nursing Teddy when the call came for Remus. A call to go Hogwarts to fight. Immediately, Andromeda turned to me. "Nymphadora, you are not going. End of discussion."

"Seriously, Mum? Why not?" I said.

"Because you have a son, and you must be responsible," Andromeda said, frowning. She sighed, looking at my hurt expression. I was totally responsible! And what part about fighting in a battle isn't Responsible! "Teddy needs one of his parents. What will happen if both of you die?"

"That won't happen," I said, crossing my arms.

"Still, you are staying home, and that's final," said Andromeda.

I turned to Remus.

"I think it's best if you're safe," said Remus.

"And what about you?" I asked.

Remus sighed. "I'm sorry, but I have to go."

I bit my lip, "Do you have to?" I couldn't help but whine. Besides, I hand uneasy feeling about the battle.

"You know I have to," he said. He kissed me, and smiled sadly, "I'll come back, I promise."

"You better," I muttered, sad.

I hugged and kissed Remus goodbye. He was about to leave, when I stopped him. I gave him a picture of Teddy. We took it yesterday, and he had turquoise hair. He seemed to like that color. Sometimes, his hair would turn pink like mine, or a grayish-brown like Remus's hair.

"Keep it with you," I said. Remus nodded, gave me one last kiss, and left.

I sighed, and sat on the couch with Teddy. He giggled for a little bit, and then grew silent. His hair changed colors, which got a small, sad smile about of me.

The hours slowly crawled bye. I was impatient, waiting for Remus to get home.

Finally, Andromeda spoke up. "I hate to see you this distressed. Why don't we make a deal. You can quickly go over to the battle to see if Remus is okay. When you are reassured, at least for a little bit, come home straight away. I'll take care of Teddy for you."

"Really? Oh, thank you, Mum!" I said, hugging her. I gave her Teddy. She just gave me a wry smile.

"Don't get sidetracked with fighting or anything. Go there, see Remus, and come back. It might be hard, but Teddy needs you more than Remus." She said.

"Okay. Goodbye, Mum," I said, kissing her cheek. "I love you."

"I love you, too," Andromeda said, smiling as I grabbed my cloak and wand, and left.

I Apparated into Hogs Head like the call said. It was empty, but I saw the passage. I crawled through, and came out into the room of Requirement. I had had my share of adventures in there at my time in Hogwarts.

Ginny was there. A little bit later, a lady came in. The lady introduced herself as Mrs. Longbottom, Neville's grandmother.

We all stood there, until Harry came in.

Mrs. Longbottom walked up to him. "Ah, Potter. You can tell us what's going on."

"Is everyone okay?" me and Ginny asked at the same time.

"'S far as we know. Are there still people in the passage to the Hog's Head?"

Mrs. Longbottom shook her head. "I was the last to come through. I sealed it, I think it unwise to leave it open now Aberforth has left his pub. Have you seen my grandson?"

"He's fighting," Harry said.

"Naturally," said Mrs. Longbottom. "Excuse me, I must go and assist him."

She left, and Harry turned to me.

"I thought you were supposed to be with Teddy at your mother's?" he asked.

"I couldn't stand not knowing—" I said. "She'll look after him—have you seen Remus?"

"He was planning to lead a group of fighters into the grounds—" Harry began, and I immediately ran off.

The castle was a mess, with creatures everywhere, and the castle crumbling. Ginny caught up with me, and we looked outside the window. Instinctively, we drew out our wands. I could see giants.

I heard a voice behind me, "Let's hope he steps on some of them!"

I shouted back, "As long as it's not any of our lot!" Ginny started jinxing into the crowds below.

"Good girl!" Came a shout, as we saw Aberforth. "They look like they might be breaching the north battlements, they've brought giants of their own."

"Have you seen Remus?" I asked.

"He was dueling Dolohov, haven't seen him since!" said Aberforth.

I ran off, to find him. I heard Ginny say behind me, "Tonks. Tonks, I'm sure he's okay—"

I ran out into the grounds, dodging curses, people, and falling debris. Finally, I spotted Remus and Dolohov.

"Remus!" I shouted.

"Dora?! What are you doing here?!" yelled Remus.

"I just had to make sure you're safe!" I cried. "Watch out!" I cried as Dolohov's jinx came scarily close to Remus.

Remus sighed, "I just want you to be safe!" He said. And then it happened. Dolohov's curse hit Remus square in the chest. Remus bent backwards and screamed in pain. He fell to the ground, dead.

I screamed, and ran over to his body. "No, no, no, Remus, wake up. Come on, wake up. Please."

I heard a cackle behind me. I turned and saw Bellatrix standing there, wand outstretched. I stood up, and blocked the jinx she sent at me. We started to duel. I was careful to be mindful of the bodies around me, as I dodged and fired spell after spell. Bellatrix didn't care, kicking over bodies to get a closer shot at me. It was dark, yet the lights from the spells and fire gave me perfect vision. Bellatrix slinked into the shadows, like a cobra. I gave it my all, as it made me focus on the fight, and not my heart that's ripped apart. Finally, she disarmed me.

Knowing what was coming. I rushed to Remus's side. I wanted his face to be the last thing I saw. I whispered "I love you." His face was illuminated with a flash of green, and everything went dark.


	53. Proud

Remus's POV

Suddenly, I was standing on the Hogwarts grounds. I looked around, and James, Sirius, and Lily were with me. So was Harry. I smiled, surrounded by my friends.

"You've been so brave," Lily said, proud as she looked at her son.

"You are nearly there," James said, "Very close. We are…so proud of you."

"Does it hurt?" asked Harry.

"Dying?" said Sirius, "Not at all. Quicker and easier than falling asleep."

"And he will want it to be quick. He wants it to over," I said.

"I didn't want you to die. Any of you, I'm sorry—" Harry looked at me, "—right after you'd had your son…Remus, I'm sorry—"

"I am sorry too," I said, "Sorry I will never know him…but he will know why I died and I hope he will understand. I was trying to make a world in which he could live a happier life."

"You'll stay with me?" asked Harry.

"Until the very end," James said.

"They won't be able to see you?

Sirius shook his head, "We are part of you. Invisible to anyone else."

Harry looked at Lily, "Stay close to me."

We walked with him into the Forbidden Forest. It was empty and silent, since most of the creatures were fighting. Finally, we stopped as we saw two Death Eaters, Yaxley and Dolohov.

"Someone there. He's got an invisibility Cloak. Could it be—?" one of them asked.

"Definitely heard something," Yaxley said, "Animal, d'you reckon?"

Dolohov glanced over his shoulder, "That head case Hagrid kept a whole bunch of stuff in here."

Yaxley looked at his watch, "Time's nearly up, Potter's had his hour. He's not coming."

"And he was sure he'd come! He won't be happy."

"Better go back. Find out what the plan is now."

The two Death Eaters left, and we followed him. Lily smiled at Harry, and James nodded in encouragement. We came to a clearing, where the rest of the Death Eaters were. Voldemort was there too.

Dolohov walked over to them. "No sign of him, my Lord."

Bellatrix stepped forward, "My Lord—"

Voldemort silenced her with a hand raise. Finally, he spoke, "I thought he would come. I expected him to come. I was, it seems…mistaken."

Harry stepped forward into the light. "You weren't," he said loudly and confidently. Then, everything vanished.

Epilogue

It had been years since that day. Years since Andromeda got that horrible call about her daughter and son-in-law. Years ago, did Andromeda rush to Hogwarts, leaving Teddy with at Arabella Figg, and saw her dead daughter and dead son-in-law. She had knelt by their sides and cried. She had been acknowledged by her sister, Narcissa, and was given a hug for her loss. She had gone home straight away, and cared for Teddy.

Teddy was now 10, and waiting for his 11th birthday. He had been told the story of his parents a couple of years ago. He knew all about the war, and the victims. He was told stories of it by his godfather, Harry. And every year, on the anniversary of the war, he would go to his parent's grave (they were buried together), and place a bouquet of pink flowers on it. He always had turquoise hair, since his mother would always insist on pink hair. He loved to hear stories about his parents and how chivalrous they were. He hung out with the Weasleys and Potters, and became close friends with Victoire Weasley. As Teddy was going to go Hogwarts, he was proud. Proud to be himself, and proud to be called a Lupin.

**A/N: And the story is officially done! I siriusly cannot believe it. Now, I have no idea what to do now…well, I hope all of you enjoyed it! It's kind of like a sequel to Sincerely, Teddy Lupin, which is Teddy's life. Funny how that turned out. Anyway, just want to say thanks to everyone. Thank you to all my readers and reviewers, and I hoped you enjoyed the story. **


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